Resources for strata buyers

The seller is required to complete a form called the Precontractual disclosure statement to the buyer, available on our strata titles forms page under 'other approved strata forms'.

The seller must give the information incorporated in that form to a buyer before the buyer signs a contract for the sale and purchase of a lot in a scheme. Failure to do so may give you (the buyer) the right to avoid the contract and/or delay the proposed settlement date.

You should keep this document including any attachments in a safe place as it contains important information which might be needed at a later date.

It is strongly recommended that the buyer read all the information provided by the seller before signing the contract.

The buyer should consider obtaining independent professional legal advice before signing the contract.

For more information:

• Buying and selling: fact sheet.
• Contact our Strata Enquiry Line by calling (08) 9273 7047.

In addition to the compulsory information, you may wish to seek additional information from the seller. For example, about insurance, the strata council, the existence and details of a 10-year plan or litigation involving the strata company.

You can ask the seller to provide the information or if you have entered into a contract with the seller to purchase the seller’s lot, you can seek access to the information directly by submitting a request in writing to the strata company.

The strata company must agree to this request and you may inspect the information from the strata company’s files on payment of $1. You may photograph materials, subject to any limitations in the Strata Titles (General) Regulations 2019, or pay a fee (set out in the Regulations) to obtain copies of the documents.

The strata company is obliged to provide access to this information to you but is not obliged to provide copies of documents.

For more information:

• Buying and selling: fact sheet.
• Contact our Strata Enquiry Line by calling (08) 9273 7047.

If the information isn’t provided or was provided after the contract was signed, the buyer can delay settlement by 15 days.

If the information isn’t provided and if the seller were to provide the information and that information would disclose material prejudice to the buyer (proof of which lies on the buyer) the buyer may avoid the contract before settlement.

If the seller gives the compulsory information after the contract is entered into but before settlement and that information would materially prejudice the buyer (proof of which lies on the buyer) the buyer may avoid the contract provided the buyer does so within 15 working days after the seller gives the information to the buyer.

Be sure to consult our buying and selling fact sheet to learn more on the different outcomes that can apply.

If you are subject to the contract avoidance provisions of the Strata Titles Act 1985, you are encouraged to seek legal advice.

For more information:

• Buying and selling: fact sheet.
• Contact our Strata Enquiry Line by calling (08) 9273 7047.

A notifiable variation is a specific variation to the initial compulsory information provided by the seller of a lot to the buyer that occurs after a contract for the sale and purchase of a lot is entered into but before the settlement date for the contract.

Notifiable variations are categorised into type 1 and type 2 notifiable variations, depending on how serious they are.

Type 1 notifiable variations

These are more serious variations and include any of the events set out below:

• The area or size of the lot or proposed lot is reduced by 5% or more from the area or size notified to the buyer before they entered into the contract.
• The proportion that the unit entitlement (or estimate of the unit entitlement) of the lot bears to the sum of the unit entitlements of all the lots increases or decreases by 5% or more than the unit entitlement details notified to the buyer before they entered into the contract.
• Anything that is served on the seller by the strata company relating to a proposal for the termination of the strata titles scheme.
• Any other event classified by the Strata Titles (General) Regulations 2019 as a type 1 notifiable variation.

Type 2 notifiable variation

These are less serious variations and include any of the events set out below:

• The schedule of unit entitlements, proposed schedule of unit entitlements, or amendment of the schedule of unit entitlements, for the strata titles scheme is modified in a way that affects the lot.
• The scheme by-laws, or proposed scheme by-laws, are modified.
• The strata company or a scheme developer:
  • enters into a contract that is likely to affect the rights of the buyer including a contract for the provision of services or amenities to the strata company or to members of the strata company, or
  • varies an existing contract of this kind in a way that is likely to affect the rights of the buyer.
• A lease, licence, right or privilege over the common property in the strata titles scheme is granted or varied.

In any of these events, the seller must give the buyer enough information so they can determine and prove whether they are substantially negatively impacted by the variation (or to use the technical term, materially prejudiced).

For more information:

• Buying and selling: fact sheet.
• Contact our Strata Enquiry Line by calling (08) 9273 7047.

Before a buyer signs a contract for the sale and purchase of a lot in a strata titles scheme, the seller must give the buyer certain information.

The Precontractual disclosure statement to the buyer sets out the information the seller is required to give to the buyer and is available on our strata titles forms page under 'other approved strata forms'.

After the contract for the sale and purchase of the lot is signed, the seller is obliged to provide information about any ‘notifiable variations’ in respect of any material changes. These are also noted in the Precontractual disclosure statement to the buyer.

If the seller hasn’t complied with these requirements, the buyer may be able to:

• delay settlement
• avoid the contract.

Your right as a buyer to avoid the contract depends on the specific circumstances that were involved in the ‘seller’s failure’ to provide or late provision of certain information.

Be sure to consult our buying and selling fact sheet to learn more on the different outcomes that can apply.

If you wish to use the contract avoidance provisions of the Strata Titles Act 1985, you are encouraged to seek legal advice.

For more information:

• Buying and selling: fact sheet.
• Contact our Strata Enquiry Line by calling (08) 9273 7047.