Decide what to buy

Buying an apartment or off the plan in Western Australia

Levies and the strata company's funds, what to read before you buy, and the off-the-plan rules on deposits, sunset clauses and changes in Western Australia, each checked against Consumer Protection WA and Landgate.

The short answer

In WA the seller must give you the scheme documents, the latest accounts, the last AGM minutes and a 12-month levy estimate before you sign. (Landgate (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026) Schemes with 10 lots or more, or worth $5 million or more, must keep a reserve fund and a 10 year plan. (Landgate (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026) Off the plan, your deposit stays in a trust account until the strata plan is registered, (Consumer Protection, Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026) and you can cancel if the registration deadline is missed. (Consumer Protection, Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026)

Rules as at 22 October 2026, from Consumer Protection WA and Landgate pages. They change: check the official page before you rely on one.

Levies and the reserve fund

The administrative fund pays day-to-day expenses and the reserve fund pays for major future work on common property. (Landgate (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026)

All strata companies with 10 lots or more, or a replacement value of $5 million or over, must have a reserve fund and a 10 year plan, which helps set levies and must be reviewed at least every 5 years. (Landgate (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026)

What to read before you buy

Before you sign, the seller must give you the scheme documents (scheme notice, scheme plan, by-laws and schedule of unit entitlements), the most recent statement of accounts, the minutes of the most recent annual general meeting, and the estimated levies for a 12-month period. (Landgate (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026)

After the contract, the seller must tell you in writing about certain changes to that information (notifiable variations). (Landgate (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026)

Buying off the plan

Deposits and pre-registration payments go to a solicitor, real estate agent or settlement agent and stay in their trust account until the strata plan is registered with Landgate. After that the developer can access them unless the contract prevents it, so you can ask for the deposit to stay in trust until settlement. (Consumer Protection, Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026)

Deposits are usually no more than 10%. If the deposit is over $20,000, or settlement is more than 60 days away, you can ask in writing for it to go into an interest-earning account with the interest paid to you. (Consumer Protection, Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026)

You can cancel if the deadline to register the strata or survey-strata plan is not met. (Consumer Protection, Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026)

Some contracts let the developer change specifications without your approval, and a defects liability clause makes the developer responsible for repairing defects. (Consumer Protection, Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (WA), verified 22 Oct 2026)

More on apartments

Every state side by side: buying an apartment or off the plan, state by state. Delora's Victorian guides go further on reading an owners corporation certificate and owners corporation due diligence; for cooling-off in general, see the cooling-off period.

Practical checklist

Before you buy an apartment in Western Australia

• Check you've received the scheme documents, accounts, AGM minutes and 12-month levy estimate before you sign
• If the scheme has a 10 year plan, compare the reserve fund with the work it lists
• Off the plan: ask for the deposit to stay in trust until settlement, and for an interest-earning account if it's over $20,000
• Read whether the contract lets the developer change specifications, and its defects liability clause
• Have a conveyancer or lawyer review the contract before you sign

Questions for a professional

• Is the reserve fund enough for the work in the 10 year plan?
• Off the plan: when can the developer access my deposit under this contract?
• What can the developer change without my approval?

Official resources

• Consumer Protection WA: Buying property off the plan
• Landgate: Buying and selling fact sheet
• Landgate: Managing finances and insurance fact sheet

Sources and methodology

• Buying and selling - fact sheet | Landgate — Landgate (WA) (retrieved 22 Oct 2026). Reuse terms: see the publisher's site
• Managing finances and insurance - fact sheet | Landgate — Landgate (WA) (retrieved 22 Oct 2026). Reuse terms: see the publisher's site
• Buying property off the plan | Consumer Protection WA — Consumer Protection, Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (WA) (retrieved 22 Oct 2026). Reuse terms: see the publisher's site

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.