An updated version of Queensland’s Property Law Act (‘the Act) was recently passed into law designed to modernise, improve and streamline the operation of the Act for both buyers and sellers.

Key changes to the Act include:

• introduction of a statutory seller disclosure scheme (Seller Disclosure Scheme) applying to all freehold sales of land;
• updated rules about leases, with further protections for lessees both current and former;
• the limitation period for actions brought based on a deed reduced from 12 years to six years;
• covenants in registered easements that relate to the use, ownership or maintenance of the land will be binding on future landowners unless the covenants are expressed to be personal;
• simplifications to rules relating to instalment contracts, adverse events under property contracts, and other matters;
• updated legal framework for electronic property transactions and the electronic creation and signing of deeds;
• simplifying and updating the common law rule against perpetuities.

In this article we’ll focus on the implications of the new seller disclosure scheme. If you need extra detail on any of the changes introduced in the Property Law Act 2023, contact our expert team for more information.

Introduction of a seller disclosure regime

One of the notable changes made to the Act in Queensland is the introduction of a seller disclosure regime to place additional emphasis on transparency and flexibility. The scheme requires sellers to provide comprehensive information about the property to potential buyers before a sale is finalised with the goal of empowering buyers to make better informed decisions when making a property purchase.

Property sellers are now obligated to disclose certain information about the property in a standardised form – known as the Seller Disclosure Notice – prescribed by the legislation. This notice must include relevant certificates such as title searches, survey plans, pool compliance certificates, and notices from the Environmental Protection Agency, the Queensland Building and Construction Commission (unlicensed building work), the Building Act 1975 (Qld) (show cause and enforcement notices) and the Planning Act 2016 (Qld) (show cause and enforcement notices), to confirm information included in the disclosure. Sellers must also disclose known building defects which may affect the property’s structural integrity or safety.

Those buying properties in community title schemes may find information about the scheme’s body corporate, community management statements and by-laws in the disclosure notice. These documents can now be provided in hard copy and electronic formats reflecting society’s wider embrace of online approval of important legal documents.

Some sales are excluded from the seller disclosure scheme

Not all property sales will be subject to the seller disclosure scheme, including:

• sales between related parties where the buyer waives the requirement;
• sales between co-owners or neighbouring landowners for a boundary realignment;
• court-ordered sales;
• transfers to a personal representative or beneficiary under a will or due to death;
• where contracts arise out of an option and the seller previously made disclosure to the buyer when entering into the option – where the buyer under the contract for the sale of the lot and the option for the sale of the lot are the same;
• where the sale price is greater than $10 million (including GST) where the buyer waives the requirement;
• where the seller is a local council, and the sale is to recover overdue rates or charges, and the buyer is given a notice that the seller is not required to provide the disclosure statement and required certificates;
• where the seller is the state and the buyer has been the tenant of the property for at least three years and the buyer is given a notice that the seller is not required to provide the disclosure statement and required certificates; and
• where the buyer is a publicly listed corporation (or a subsidiary of a publicly listed corporation), the state, a statutory body or a constructing authority under the Acquisitions of Land Act 1967 (Qld).

What happens if the seller disclosure scheme is not complied with?

Under the amendments, the buyer will have the right to terminate the contract for sale before settlement if:

• the seller does not provide disclosure documents, or;
• if the seller provides disclosure documents to the buyer and any of the following applies:
  1. it is inaccurate or incomplete in relation to a material matter affecting the property at the time it was given to the buyer;
  2. at the time the contract is signed by the buyer, the buyer is not aware of the correct state of affairs concerning the matter; and
  3. if the buyer had been aware of the correct state of affairs concerning the matter, the buyer would not have signed the contract.

If a remedy for the failure to disclose particular information is found in other legislation, then the provisions of that act will apply instead of the statutory seller disclosure scheme termination rights.

Unclear? Contact our expert team

The recent modernising changes to the Property Law Act have been welcomed as streamlining the pre-contractual process for property sales in Queensland, while preserving the essential principles of the original act.

If as either a buyer or seller you’re unsure of what is required as part of the new seller disclosure scheme, or other parts of the new Act, contact our expert property team at Big Law today for more information and guidance.