More than 1400 legal professionals have taken part in Queensland Law Society Seller Disclosure Roadshow events in eight locations across the state in recent months.
QLS and InfoTrack representatives met members and support staff from Cairns to the Gold Coast to help them prepare for the new Property Law Act 2023 (PLA), which commences tomorrow, 1 August.
The roadshow, which kicked off in April in Townsville, concluded in Gladstone last week with attendees and online audiences having the opportunity to ask questions.
More than 900 people have also played the Seller Disclosure Roadshow online recording, available on the QLS Shop.
A recap, overview of the new framework and the supporting information are available below for practitioners.
See the earlier article FAQs for seller disclosure forms – Proctor for more information.
What is seller disclosure?
Under the PLA, before a contract for the sale of a lot is signed by the buyer, the seller must give the buyer:
- a seller disclosure statement; and
- prescribed certificates.
These are referred to collectively as the disclosure documents in section 99 of the PLA.
Failure to comply with the seller disclosure obligations can give rise to termination rights by the buyer.
The prescribed certificates for a disclosure statement are listed in section 5 of the Property Law Regulation 2024.
Where are the approved forms?
The approved forms, for use from 1 August 2025, are available:
Seller disclosure statement (Form 2)
BCCM Form 33 – Body corporate certificate
BCCM Form 34 – Body corporate certificate – Specified Two-lot Schemes
BUGTA Form 18 – Body corporate certificate
Practitioners should note you must not give the Form 2 and body corporate certificates before 1 August 2025 (including downloading, completing or signing it) because it is not an effective statutory form until 1 August 2025.
More information on seller disclosure obligations
QLS has published further information on Property Central – Queensland Law Society.
These include:
- Background Information Document providing an overview of what transactions the scheme applies to, what are the exceptions, how to complete the Form 2 and prescribed certificates and how to give the disclosure documents. The paper also discusses termination rights for non-compliance.
- QLS Seller Disclosure Roadshow training – a recording of the QLS Seller Disclosure Roadshow training is now available on the QLS Shop for purchase for $25 for members.
Other useful materials for practitioners include:
- FAQs for seller disclosure forms – Proctor – this article explores some frequently asked questions about completing the approved Form 2 Seller disclosure statement (Form 2) and giving seller disclosure.
- The Queensland Government has published information on its website seller disclosure scheme and a Guide to the seller disclosure scheme to help sellers, buyers and their agents understand their rights and obligations.
New REIQ contracts
QLS and REIQ have updated the REIQ contracts to reflect the new seller disclosure scheme.
These are available on the REIQ Property Contracts – Queensland Law Society page.
Members can also refer to:
- Detailed commentary on new REIQ contracts – this resource provides further detail on the contract changes.
- New REIQ contracts – key changes – a summary of the key changes for the two new contracts, the Contract for the Sale and Purchase of Residential Real Estate (1st edition) and the Contract for the Sale and Purchase of Commercial Real Estate (1st edition).
What transactions are affected by the PLA seller disclosure scheme?
- Seller disclosure obligations apply to the sale of a lot under the Land Title Act 1994 other than a proposed lot
- It applies to residential and commercial land sales
- It does not apply to sales of:
- leasehold land under the Land Act 1994
- proposed lots (see definition in Schedule 2 of the PLA). The disclosure obligations under the applicable off the plan legislation will continue to apply
- There are a range of exceptions in s 100 of the PLA, including:
- sales of property where the price is more than $10 million (GST inclusive) and the buyer waives compliance with s 99 in writing prior to signing the contractsales to related parties (as defined in s 96 of the PLA) where the buyer waives compliance with s 99 in writing prior to signing the contract sales to the State, a local government, a listed public company or its subsidiaries; and
- contracts formed on the exercise of an option where the buyer and seller under the contract are the same as the parties to the option.
- With regard to options, note also that s 251(2) of the PLA provides that seller disclosure is not required for a contract entered into pursuant to the exercise of an option which was granted prior to 1 August 2025.
Practitioners should become familiar with the various other exceptions in s 100 of the PLA.
Giving the approved forms
The Form 2 must:
- be in the approved form,
- include the information prescribed by regulation,
- be completed with the information that is true at the time the statement is given to the buyer, and
- be signed by the seller.
(see s 99 PLA).
However, the effect of s 97 of the PLA is that the Form 2 can be signed by the seller personally or by an agent who is authorised to act for the seller.
The Form 2 includes a place for the buyer to sign. It is not a requirement under s 99 of the PLA that the buyer signs, but if the buyer does sign, it can be evidence of the buyer receiving the Form 2.
A disclosure statement may be an electronic document and may be electronically signed (s 99(7) of the PLA).
How to give the disclosure documents if there are two or more sellers or two or more buyers?
Section 99(5) and (6) of the PLA provide in effect that s 99(1) of the PLA is complied with if the disclosure documents are given by a seller to a buyer before any buyer signs the contract.
Scoping fees and retainers
Ultimately, the decision on pricing will need to be made by each firm depending on its cost base, pricing model, the risk involved, perceived value to clients and business practices. QLS cannot offer guidance on particular rates or amounts, but the considerations outlined below might be useful:
- Review the Form 2 and assess the time it will take to take instructions from the seller, obtain the searches, review the search results and prepare seller disclosure. Also consider the urgency of the instructions, the anticipated value of the transaction, the complexity of the matter.
- Consider how you would typically allocate this work between a solicitor and conveyancing staff and how you would usually price the services being provided time spent by each staff member (i.e. on a time basis, value pricing basis, fixed fee etc).
- Some of the questions on the Form will require a conversation with your client about the property, so this will also need to be accounted for in the estimate.
- If the client wants to limit your retainer to only preparing the Form 2 and obtaining prescribed certificates, consider if you should also advise on how results might affect a potential contract for sale? Depending on the search results and client instructions, you may need to recommend special conditions be included in the contract, advise on disclosure required under the contract or other legislation, and proactively warn of other risks. If a client is seeking a discrete retainer, practitioners must carefully articulate and explain the scope of such a limited retainer to the client.
- You’ll also need to give advice to the client about the significance of the seller disclosure and consequences for inaccurate or incomplete disclosure.
- Seller disclosure must be completed with the information that is true at the time the statement is given to the buyer (s 99(2) of the PLA). It will be important for the seller client to understand when the information becomes untrue – for example, if after completing the seller disclosure, but before it is given to a buyer, the lot becomes subject to an environmental enforcement order under s 369C of the Environmental Protection Act 1994 which means the seller disclosure needs to be updated. Even if the seller disclosure documents have already been given to the buyer, the seller may still need to make further disclosure under the contract before it is signed by the buyer.
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