Cooling-off period when buying a home, by state

State by state

New South Wales

Written notice withdraws you from the contract; you pay the vendor 0.25% of the purchase price (about $250 per $100,000). Off-the-plan contracts have 10 business days. You can waive the period with a “66W certificate”, or shorten or extend it by written agreement (nsw.gov.au).

Victoria

The period applies to private sales of residential property and rural land under 20 hectares. You cancel by written notice to the seller or the seller’s agent. You get a refund “less $100 or 0.2 per cent of the purchase price, whichever is greater” (Consumer Affairs Victoria).

Queensland

The period starts the day you receive a copy of the contract signed by both parties. You give a signed written notice before 5pm on the final day, and you are responsible for it arriving in time. The seller must refund the deposit within 14 days. You can waive or shorten the period by written notice to the seller or their agent (qld.gov.au).

Western Australia

“There is no mandatory ‘cooling off’ period for real estate contracts made in Western Australia.” The parties can agree to have one inserted in the contract (Consumer Protection WA). If you want one, negotiate it before you sign.

South Australia

The SA Law Handbook says the period is two business days from service of the Form 1. If the Form 1 is given before you sign, it runs from signing. You need written notice to the vendor or agent within the period. To waive it, you need a certificate from a solicitor saying you were advised of the consequences. The handbook page was last revised in December 2013, so confirm with a SA conveyancer.

Tasmania

The Property Agents and Land Transactions Act 2016 (Tas), in its authorised version of 1 July 2025, contains no cooling-off provision. A cooling-off clause would therefore come from the contract itself. Read the contract with your conveyancer.

Australian Capital Territory

Every residential sale contract has a cooling-off period. You give the seller a written rescission notice, signed by you or your lawyer, and you forfeit 0.25% of the price, recoverable from the deposit. You can extend or shorten the period by agreement. Shortening it, and waiving it, require legal advice and a lawyer’s certificate given to the seller (Civil Law (Sale of Residential Property) Act 2003).

Northern Territory

The NT Government publishes a cooling-off rule for property not sold by auction. Its pages could not be read for this guide, so ask the NT Government or an NT conveyancer for the current length and how it starts.

When there is no cooling-off

• Auctions. NSW, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia and the ACT all say a purchase at auction has no cooling-off period. See buying at auction.
• Sales soon after a failed auction. In NSW, a contract exchanged on the same day as a passed-in auction has none. In Queensland, a private sale within 2 business days of an unsuccessful auction, or to a registered bidder, has none. In Victoria, a purchase within three clear business days before or after an auction has none. In the ACT, a same-day contract with a recorded bidder has none.
• Some buyers. In Victoria, estate agents and corporate bodies are excluded; in the ACT, corporations are excluded.
• Tender sales in the ACT.

What to do inside the period

Use it for what the contract allows you to check: finance, a building and pest inspection, and the disclosure documents. Book inspectors early. NSW Government advises giving a consultant as much notice as possible during the cooling-off period because cancelling forfeits 0.25%. See building and pest inspection and contract of sale and exchange.

Which professional to consult

A conveyancer or solicitor can tell you the exact end of the period for your contract and prepare the notice; see conveyancer. The notice must usually be written and delivered in time, so do not leave it to the last day.