You’ve sold your home. The ink on the contract is dry. Congratulations!

What’s next? Appoint Flat Rate Settlements, as your settlement representative of course!

And then? Once the buyer’s finance is approved you should contact any bank or financier with a secured loan over the property and advise them you have sold your property.

Discharge authority

Your bank will ask you to sign a form authorising the discharge of mortgage. This is commonly called a Discharge Authority or Request to Release Security.  While many sample authority forms can be found online, it’s best to ask your bank for the form to ensure you get the correct one.

Make sure you give your bank authority to liaise with your settlement lawyer or settlement agent. This is important, as your settlement representative will need to liaise with your bank.

Don’t delay

Once your bank has received the authority, it will move on to preparing the discharge of mortgage document that must be handed over at settlement. Banks can take up to 10 business days to complete this task. Banks will not generally prepare this document until they’ve received your discharge authority, so it’s important you sign the authority promptly to avoid any delay in settlement.