Section 32 in Victoria: what a vendor statement is and what to check

A Section 32 (also called a vendor statement) is the document a seller must give you before you sign a contract to buy property in Victoria. It’s required by section 32 of the Sale of Land Act 1962 (Victorian Government (legislation.vic.gov.au), verified 30 Jul 2026) (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026) and it exists to tell you what affects the land before you’re bound. It’s usually prepared by the seller’s legal practitioner or conveyancer (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026). It's one mandatory disclosure document, not the complete due-diligence picture — contract review, independent title and planning searches, physical inspections, finance and insurance checks all remain essential. Read well, it surfaces most of the paperwork-visible risk; skimmed, it's where expensive surprises hide.

At a glance

• Who prepares it: usually the seller’s legal practitioner or conveyancer; the vendor signs it. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026)
• When you get it: before you sign the contract (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) — see when it’s due, including the change from 1 June 2027. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 27 Sep 2026)
• What it covers: title matters such as mortgages, covenants and easements; not the building’s condition. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026)
• If it’s missing or wrong: Consumer Affairs Victoria says the contract is not binding on a buyer, and describes a buyer’s ability to withdraw or take legal action (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) — see what happens, and what we couldn’t confirm about penalties.
• Not the contract: the contract of sale is the agreement; the Section 32 is the disclosure statement that comes before it — see how they differ.

What a Section 32 contains — the divisions, in plain English

A vendor statement follows a set structure (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026). Consumer Affairs Victoria describes two parts: a principal statement (mortgages, improvements, easements, planning controls, rates and taxes) and, where a property is sold under a terms contract or has a mortgage that won’t be discharged at settlement, an additional statement. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) Here’s what each part means for you.

Note: the owner-builder insurance disclosure in division 2 and the 7-year building-permit disclosure in division 5 are two different legal concepts with two different lookback periods — don't treat them as interchangeable numbers when checking a specific property.

When you must get it, and how long it stays current

The seller must give you the Section 32 before you sign the contract. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) In practice it’s usually attached to the contract, though it may be provided separately before a contract is available, and the selling agent usually makes it available to prospective buyers before the sale or auction. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) For an auction, read it beforehand: there is no cooling-off period at a sale by auction. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026)

Earlier availability from 1 June 2027. From that date, Consumer Affairs Victoria says agents must make the Section 32 available within 14 days after a private sale is advertised, at least 14 days before an auction or fixed-date sale, and in any case before the buyer signs the contract if the property isn’t advertised or sells within 14 days of being advertised. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 27 Sep 2026)

One exception CAV notes: a new statement isn’t required if the seller and buyer previously entered into a contract for the sale of the same property on substantially the same terms and a statement was provided for that sale. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026)

How long is a Section 32 “valid”? None of the Consumer Affairs Victoria pages Delora read sets a fixed validity period. CAV does note that statements are sometimes prepared up to 12 months before the sale; for a property in an owners corporation it advises buyers to ask for a new owners corporation certificate before settlement or to inspect the owners corporation register and records. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) So look at the dates on the certificates and searches in the statement you’re given.

What to check when you read it

General reading points, not advice on any particular property. Each one maps to a part of the document described above.

1. Is it all there? The title (register search statement and plan) is mandatory (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026), and a property in an owners corporation comes with owners corporation information (division 6).
2. Is it signed? The vendor signs the statement. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026)
3. Are the dates recent? Statements are sometimes prepared up to 12 months before the sale, so check how old the certificates and searches are. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026)
4. Does an additional statement apply? One is prepared where the property is sold under a terms contract or a mortgage won’t be discharged at settlement. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026)
5. Do the easements, covenants, zone and overlays fit what you want to do with the land? (divisions 3 and 4). The statement discloses them; whether they matter to you is for you and your adviser.
6. Do the building permits match the works you can see? (division 5)
7. What is it silent on? A Section 32 is about title and disclosures; it does not cover building condition, building-regulation compliance or whether the title’s measurements are accurate. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026)
8. Has someone qualified checked it? Consumer Affairs Victoria says a buyer should have their own legal practitioner or conveyancer check the statement before buying. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026)

Section 32 vs contract of sale: what’s the difference?

They’re two documents that usually arrive together. The contract is the agreement; the Section 32 is the disclosure that comes before you sign it.

Consumer Affairs Victoria also says the seller’s disclosure obligations cannot be removed through a term of the contract. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026)

The cooling-off period, in full

Cooling-off is a separate right from the Section 32: it starts on the day you sign (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026), so it is not a substitute for reading the statement first. For the state-by-state picture, see the cooling-off period in Victoria, properly explained.

A private-sale purchase in Victoria generally carries a 3 clear business day cooling-off period, starting the date you (the buyer) sign the contract — not the date the vendor countersigns. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026) It does not apply to: a property bought at auction; a sale within 3 clear business days before or after a publicly advertised auction of that property; land used mainly for industrial or commercial purposes; rural land over 20 hectares used mainly for farming; a buyer who previously signed a contract for the same property on substantially the same terms; or a buyer who is an estate agent or a corporate body. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026) Withdraw within the period and you get back any money paid, less $100 or 0.2% of the purchase price — whichever is greater. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026) There is no cooling-off period at auction, full stop — including on a pre-auction offer accepted within 3 clear business days of the scheduled auction date. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026)

The red flags that matter most

Easements and restrictive covenants that limit where and what you can build; owners-corporation special levies — combustible-cladding rectification alone has run roughly $10,000 to over $100,000 per lot in real Australian cases (bodycorporatefees.com (commercial strata-fees information site), verified 3 Aug 2026); building works done without permits; and planning overlays — heritage, flood and bushfire — that restrict use or add cost. And watch for what’s missing: a statement without the title and plan is deficient.

If it’s missing, wrong or incomplete: what happens, and what about penalties?

A Section 32 must be factually accurate and complete. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026) Consumer Affairs Victoria describes the consequence in two ways. Its guidance for agents says a contract is not binding on a buyer if a Section 32 is not provided or is incomplete or inaccurate; its guidance for buyers and sellers says that with incorrect or insufficient information a buyer may be able to withdraw from the sale or take legal action. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) The accuracy requirement is likewise described as one under which a buyer may be entitled to withdraw from the sale or pursue legal action against the vendor. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026)

What about penalties? The Consumer Affairs Victoria pages Delora read describe the buyer’s position; they don’t give a penalty amount for a seller or agent, and they don’t set out the procedure or time limits for ending a contract. The Act’s own section text could not be retrieved by Delora’s automated tools when this page was updated, so this page does not state fine amounts, deadlines or the mechanics of rescinding. Read the Sale of Land Act 1962 on legislation.vic.gov.au for the wording, and note that whether you can rescind, delay, seek compensation or take another step depends on the actual omission, its materiality, timing and the specific facts. Don't assume the legal consequence yourself; get advice immediately from a licensed conveyancer or solicitor.

What a Section 32 does — and doesn’t — tell you

Its title information covers mortgages, covenants and easements — it says nothing about whether the buildings on the land are structurally sound or comply with building regulations or whether the title’s measurements are accurate. (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 30 Jul 2026) (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026) That gap is exactly what a building and pest inspection exists to close, and what an owners corporation certificate exists to close for shared-building financial risk — neither is optional just because the vendor statement looks clean.

How to read yours before you sign

Get the statement early, read every section (not just the price), cross-check the planning overlays against the property, and have a licensed conveyancer or solicitor review it (Consumer Affairs Victoria, verified 21 Oct 2026). Use the checklist above, and the Section 32 checklist linked below, to know what to ask.

Go deeper on each part

This page explains the document as a whole. Each of these covers one part of it in full depth.

Section 32 checklists by suburb

Sourced to the Sale of Land Act 1962 (Vic) and Consumer Affairs Victoria; GAIC rate is the 2026-27 State Revenue Office figure. General information, not legal advice — always confirm with a licensed conveyancer or solicitor. Data as of 2026-11-07.