Selling a property feels like a race to settlement — agent appointed, photos taken, buyers through the door. But before any of that, the law in New South Wales places a clear set of obligations on you as the seller. Get the disclosure right and the sale runs smoothly. Get it wrong, and a buyer may have the right to walk away, sometimes well after contracts are exchanged. Here is what NSW law actually requires you to disclose, and why it matters more than many sellers realise.
The starting point: NSW is not a “buyer beware” state
There is an old legal principle called caveat emptor — let the buyer beware. It suggests the risk of a bad purchase sits entirely with the buyer. In NSW, that principle has been substantially cut back when it comes to selling land. Sellers cannot simply stay silent and leave a purchaser to discover problems on their own.
The framework comes from the Conveyancing Act 1919 (NSW) and the regulation made under it, the Conveyancing (Sale of Land) Regulation 2022 (NSW), which commenced on 1 September 2022. Together they require certain documents to be attached to the contract for sale before the property goes to market, and they imply certain promises — called warranties — into every contract whether the seller likes it or not.
This is different from the agent’s separate duty. Real estate agents in NSW have their own obligation not to conceal “material facts” they know or ought to know. The seller’s disclosure duty under the Conveyancing Act sits alongside that and is the focus here.
The prescribed documents you must attach
Section 52A of the Conveyancing Act allows regulations to prescribe documents that must be attached to a contract for the sale of residential land. Schedule 1 of the 2022 Regulation sets out that list. In practice, for a standard residential sale, the contract must include things such as:
- A title search for the land, showing who owns it and what is registered against it.
- A copy of the plan that created the lot, and any registered dealings, easements, covenants or restrictions noted on the title.
- A current planning certificate (often called a section 10.7 certificate) issued by the local council, setting out zoning and planning controls.
- A drainage or sewerage diagram showing the location of any sewer main affecting the property.
If the property is part of a strata scheme or community scheme, additional documents are required — including the relevant by-laws and instruments affecting the common property. If a swimming pool is present, compliance information is also relevant.
The reason for this is straightforward. A buyer is committing a large sum to a property, and these documents reveal the legal realities — who can run a pipe across the land, whether a neighbour has a right of way, what the council will and will not permit. Attaching them upfront means the buyer signs with eyes open.
What happens if a document is missing
This is where many sellers underestimate the stakes. If a prescribed document is not attached as required, the purchaser may have a right to rescind the contract — that is, to bring it to an end — within a set period after exchange. They do not need to prove they suffered any loss. The remedy exists because the document was missing, full stop.
There are limits and exceptions, and a seller can sometimes preserve the contract if the omission is minor or the buyer had the information anyway. But relying on those exceptions is a poor strategy. It is far cheaper to prepare the contract properly than to fight about whether a rescission right has been triggered.
The warranties you give without saying a word
Beyond the attached documents, the 2022 Regulation implies a set of warranties into the contract. In broad terms, the seller is treated as promising things such as: that the land is not subject to certain adverse matters not disclosed in the contract, that there are no undisclosed planning notices or orders affecting the property, and that the seller is not aware of certain undisclosed defects in title.
These warranties operate automatically. A seller who knows of an adverse affectation and stays quiet, hoping it slips through, is not just being commercially risky — they may be in breach of a warranty the law has written into their contract for them. That can hand the buyer a right to compensation or, in some cases, to end the contract.
Cooling off — a related protection for buyers
NSW also gives most residential buyers a cooling-off period, under section 66S of the Conveyancing Act. After contracts are exchanged, a private-treaty buyer generally has five business days in which they can rescind, forfeiting a small percentage of the purchase price (0.25%) if they do. There are exceptions — notably, cooling off does not apply to sales by auction.
This matters to sellers because it shapes the early days after exchange. A buyer who exchanges and then discovers a disclosure problem during the cooling-off window has an easy exit. Clean disclosure reduces the chance of a buyer using that window to escape a deal you thought was done.
How NSW compares to Queensland
If you have sold property across the border, the rules feel different. We have written separately about Queensland’s seller disclosure scheme, which changed significantly on 1 August 2025 when the Property Law Act 2023 (Qld) introduced a mandatory Form 2 seller disclosure statement and a bundle of prescribed certificates that must be given before a contract is signed.
The two states now sit closer together than they once did, but the mechanisms differ:
| NSW | QLD (from 1 Aug 2025) | |
|---|---|---|
| Core law | Conveyancing Act 1919 + 2022 Regulation | Property Law Act 2023 (Qld) |
| Method | Prescribed documents attached to the contract | Form 2 statement plus prescribed certificates |
| Timing | Before the property is marketed | Before the buyer signs |
| Buyer remedy | Rescission for missing documents; warranty claims | Termination for non-compliance, up to settlement |
The practical lesson is the same in both states. Disclosure is no longer optional, and the cost of getting it wrong falls on the seller.
Practical first steps before you list
A little preparation removes most of the risk. If you are getting ready to sell in NSW, consider the following:
- Engage a conveyancing lawyer early — before the agent’s board goes up, not after a buyer is found. The contract needs to be ready to go.
- Order your certificates and searches so every prescribed document can be attached from day one.
- Disclose what you know. If you are aware of a drainage issue, an unapproved structure or a dispute with a neighbour, tell your lawyer. Hiding it rarely ends well and can breach the implied warranties.
- Check strata and pool compliance if they apply, as these carry their own document requirements.
For a fuller picture of how a sale moves from listing to settlement, our guide to the conveyancing process in NSW walks through each stage. The NSW Government also publishes general buying and selling property information for an overview of the process.
The Bottom Line
Selling a home in NSW is not a matter of handing the keys over and hoping for the best. The Conveyancing Act and the 2022 Regulation set out exactly what must be disclosed, attach real consequences to getting it wrong, and write certain promises into your contract automatically. A buyer armed with a rescission right can unwind a sale you thought was settled. The good news is that almost all of this risk disappears with proper preparation before the property is listed.
If you are thinking about selling, or you want your contract for sale prepared correctly from the outset, don’t hesitate to get in touch with one of our friendly conveyancing lawyers on the Central Coast. A short conversation now can save a great deal of stress later.
