HELP!!!Late settlement penalty interest for western australia

Have a look at the standard form of contract.  Does it say that the purchaser can charge interest if the vendor is late?  In some states the purchaser can claim default interest and in some they can't.

I'm just going to get on my soapbox for a minute here though.  Do you know the reason for the delay?  Is it the vendor's fault or the bank's fault?  Are you suffering any financial detriment due to the late settlement (ie, have you moved out of your house and how have to stay in a hotel) or anything like that?  How long was the original settlement?  Was it the standard 30 days or has it been longer?  The reason I ask is because ALL banks are behind at the moment. and I would imagine it would be almost impossible for banks to meet the 30 day settlement.  Is it really necessary to charge default interest?  Or could you cut the vendors a bit of slack and accept that with the banks the way they are at the moment it is just "one of those things".

I am waiting on settlement on one of my properties (a block of units) at the moment and the purchaser is late.  It is costing me money because I didn't renew leases after we went to contract so that the purchaser could put their own tenants in.  So I now have two empty units sitting there.  BUT, I realise that the banks are slow and that the delay is no fault of the purchaser and I don't really see any point in penalising the purchaser for something that is out of their hands. 

I am a big believer in karma.  On several occasions my banks have been late and I have only ever once been charged default interest.  I just pay it forward.

Cheers

K