On 22 November 2018 the Conveyancing Legislation Amendment Bill 2018 (NSW) (Amendment Act) received assent by both houses of the NSW Government. However the majority of the amendments, including those to the Conveyancing Act relating to off-the-plan sales will not commence until a date to be determined by the NSW Government, which will likely be in mid-2019.
Once commenced, this will be the most significant change to off-the-plan since the NSW Government enacted its changes to sunset date clauses back in 2015. A link to our article regarding the main changes can be found here.
- a 10 business day cooling off period will apply to the purchase of residential property off-the-plan (currently this is only five business days)
- developers will be required to attach a disclosure statement to the contract for sale. The disclosure statement will need to include a copy of the draft subdivision plan and other prescribed documents. Exactly what other prescribed documents will be required is unknown but they are likely to include proposed strata by-laws, proposed community or neighbourhood management statements and perhaps a schedule of finishes, as applicable
- if a developer becomes aware that the disclosure statement contains inaccuracies in a "material particular", a notice of changes must be served on each affected purchaser at least 21 days before completion of the contract
- a purchaser will have the right to rescind if any change notified in the notice of changes is such that the purchaser would not have entered into the contract had the purchaser been aware of the change and would be materially prejudiced by the change.
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The Fair Trading Amendment (Short-Term Rental Accommodation) Bill 2018 received assent in August this year. While the bill has received assent, the NSW Government has announced that the new legislation will not commence until early 2018. The NSW Government is currently seeking consultation on the Code of Conduct which plays a huge part in the reforms. Click here to see our previous article on these new reforms.
This publication does not deal with every important topic or change in law and is not intended to be relied upon as a substitute for legal or other advice that may be relevant to the reader's specific circumstances. If you have found this publication of interest and would like to know more or wish to obtain legal advice relevant to your circumstances please contact one of the named individuals listed.
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