Buy a Home

Buying a home by state

How cooling-off, the contract, auctions, the deposit and settlement work in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia and South Australia.

The five steps, state by state

Every purchase goes through the same five steps, but each state writes its own rules for them. The table gives the rule that matters most at each step; the state pages give the detail and the exceptions. Each cell links to the government or regulator page it comes from.

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Where the states differ most

Cooling-off is the clearest example. Western Australia has no statutory cooling-off period at all, South Australia gives 2 clear business days, Victoria 3, and New South Wales and Queensland 5. No state gives a cooling-off period at auction. What the seller must disclose before you sign also differs: Victoria's Section 32, the New South Wales prescribed documents, Queensland's Form 2 and South Australia's Form 1, which can arrive after the contract is signed.

Choose your state

Tasmania, the ACT and the Northern Territory are not covered here yet. Their cooling-off periods are compared in the deposit guide.

Practical checklist

Whichever state you buy in

• Read the state page for where the property is, not where you live
• Find out before you bid or sign whether a cooling-off period applies
• Have your own conveyancer, settlement agent or lawyer read the contract and disclosure documents
• Write any condition you rely on into the contract

Questions for a professional

• Which state's rules apply to this purchase, and is there anything unusual about this contract?
• What has the seller disclosed, and what is missing?

Official resources

• Consumer Affairs Victoria: buying property by private sale
• NSW Government: contracts and deposits
• Queensland Government: contract of sale
• Consumer Protection WA: property settlement
• SA.GOV.AU: home sales (offers, auctions and cooling-off)

Sources and methodology

• Buying property by private sale — Consumer Affairs Victoria (retrieved 30 Jul 2026, last checked 7 Aug 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Buying property at auction — Consumer Affairs Victoria (retrieved 30 Jul 2026, last checked 7 Aug 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Conveyancing and contracts for sellers — Consumer Affairs Victoria (retrieved 30 Jul 2026, last checked 7 Aug 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• New changes to property sales and underquoting laws | Consumer Affairs Victoria — Consumer Affairs Victoria (retrieved 27 Sep 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Consumer Legislation Amendment Act 2026 (Vic), No. 36 of 2026 — Act as made — Parliament of Victoria (retrieved 27 Sep 2026). Licence: Victorian legislation — free reuse per legislation.vic.gov.au copyright notice
• Settlement — Consumer Affairs Victoria (retrieved 29 Jul 2026, last checked 31 Jul 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Contracts and deposits when buying property in NSW | NSW Government — NSW Government (retrieved 7 Aug 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Steps to selling a property | NSW Government — NSW Government (retrieved 7 Aug 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Buying property at an auction — NSW Department of Customer Service (in collaboration with NSW Fair Trading) (retrieved 12 Aug 2026). Licence: NSW Government content, reproduced for research/citation purposes
• Contracts and deposits when buying property in NSW | NSW Government — NSW Government (retrieved 22 Oct 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Cooling-off period | Queensland Government — Queensland Government (retrieved 7 Aug 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Seller disclosure scheme | Queensland Government — Queensland Government (retrieved 7 Aug 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Auctioning a property — Queensland Government (Office of Fair Trading) (retrieved 12 Aug 2026). Licence: Queensland Government content, reproduced for research/citation purposes
• Contract of sale | Queensland Government — Queensland Government (retrieved 22 Oct 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Lodging and paying transfer duty — Queensland Revenue Office (retrieved 12 Aug 2026). Licence: Queensland Government content, reproduced for research/citation purposes
• Home buyers glossary | Consumer Protection, Western Australia — Consumer Protection WA (Dept of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety) (retrieved 7 Aug 2026). Reuse terms: see the publisher's site
• Resources for strata buyers | Landgate — Landgate (WA land titles authority) (retrieved 7 Aug 2026). Reuse terms: see the publisher's site
• Buying property at auction | Consumer Protection, Western Australia — Consumer Protection WA (Dept of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety) (retrieved 22 Oct 2026). Reuse terms: see the publisher's site
• Real Estate and Business Agents Act 1978 (WA) - Section 68, Use of trust accounts — Parliament of Western Australia (via AustLII consolidated text) (retrieved 12 Aug 2026). Licence: AustLII consolidated legislation text, reproduced for research/citation purposes
• Property settlement | Consumer Protection, Western Australia — Consumer Protection WA (Dept of Local Government, Industry Regulation and Safety) (retrieved 22 Oct 2026). Reuse terms: see the publisher's site
• Offers, auctions and buying off the plan | SA.GOV.AU — Attorney-General's Department, South Australia (retrieved 7 Aug 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Form 1 disclosure statement — Legal Services Commission of South Australia (retrieved 13 Aug 2026). Licence: Public legal-education content, Legal Services Commission of SA
• Offers, auctions and buying off the plan — Government of South Australia (Attorney-General's Department) (retrieved 12 Aug 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0
• Land and Business (Sale and Conveyancing) Act 1994 (SA), version 15.1.2026 (authorised PDF) — South Australian Government (Parliamentary Counsel) (retrieved 22 Oct 2026). Licence: Crown copyright, reproduced for research/citation purposes
• Deposit (Law Handbook -- Buying a home -- General conditions of the contract) — Legal Services Commission of South Australia (retrieved 12 Aug 2026). Reuse terms: see the publisher's site
• Property settlement | SA.GOV.AU — Government of South Australia (retrieved 22 Oct 2026). Licence: CC BY 4.0

Figures on this page are drawn from Delora's local knowledge graph, refreshed from these primary sources and checked for changes on a regular schedule. If a figure here looks out of date, the official source above is always the authority — please let us know.