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The Complete Seller Disclosure Checklist for Queensland

Queensland's statutory disclosure framework, introduced under the Property Law Act 2023, is now a central part of every home sale. Here is the full checklist of what you must disclose, what you should disclose, and the common traps that cause contracts to fall over.

Queensland used to run on a principle of caveat emptor: buyer beware. That changed on 1 August 2025, when the Property Law Act 2023 commenced and introduced a mandatory statutory disclosure regime for most residential sales. Sellers now have a legal obligation to provide a prescribed Form 2 disclosure statement and a specified set of prescribed certificates before a buyer signs the contract. Failure to do so gives the buyer a right to terminate the contract at any time up to settlement, even after they have signed and paid a deposit. This is a significant legal shift, and a lot of sellers (and some agents and solicitors who have not kept up) still do not fully appreciate how strict the new regime is.

This article walks through the full disclosure checklist: the statutory items you must disclose, the common areas of ambiguity where sellers and their conveyancers need to make careful judgments, and the voluntary disclosures that, while not legally required, almost always make the sale smoother and the buyer more confident. This is a general overview, not legal advice. Every sale has its own specifics, and a Queensland-licensed solicitor or conveyancer should be engaged before you sign a contract to make sure your particular disclosure obligations are properly met.

What the statutory regime requires

Under the Property Law Act 2023, a residential seller must give the buyer a completed Form 2 disclosure statement and a set of prescribed certificates before the buyer signs the contract. If you hand these over after the buyer has signed, or if the statement is materially inaccurate or incomplete, the buyer has a termination right right up to settlement. The termination entitles them to a full refund of the deposit, which means you are back at square one, potentially months into a campaign, with a listing that now carries the whiff of a failed contract.

The Form 2 disclosure statement covers the identity of the seller, the lot description and title particulars, details of any tenancies, any unregistered encumbrances that affect the property, pool safety compliance, registered encumbrances disclosed via the title search, body corporate information (for units and townhouses), rates and water charge information, and zoning and planning information. It is a prescribed form, not a free-text document, which means omitting sections or providing partial answers is not an option.

The prescribed certificates that must accompany the Form 2 vary slightly depending on the property type, but for a standard freehold house in Queensland they typically include a title search, a plan of survey, a body of water search (if applicable), and a certificate of title. For community title schemes (units and townhouses), the requirements expand significantly to include body corporate records, the community management statement, the body corporate disclosure statement, and financial information about the scheme.

The statutory checklist, section by section

Title and ownership. Confirm the registered proprietor matches the person selling. Identify any registered mortgages, caveats, easements, covenants, or other encumbrances on the title. All registered matters come through on the title search; the statutory form requires disclosure of known unregistered matters as well, which is the trap that catches many sellers.

Unregistered encumbrances. This is the single most overlooked section. It covers things like unregistered easements (informal arrangements with neighbours about access, drainage, or fencing), heritage-related restrictions that are not registered on title, and statutory notices or orders that have been issued but not yet registered. If you know about one of these and do not disclose it, you are exposed. If you genuinely do not know, the obligation is to make reasonable inquiries; willful blindness is not a defence.

Pool safety. Queensland pool safety requirements are administered under the Building Act 1975 and the Queensland Development Code. If the property has a pool or spa that holds more than 300mm of water, you need a valid pool safety certificate before settlement, or you must issue a Form 36 Notice of No Pool Safety Certificate. Issuing a Form 36 puts a 90 day compliance obligation on the buyer after settlement, which is legal but is often a point of negotiation and can reduce the attractiveness of your listing.

Tenancies. If the property is tenanted, the tenancy details must be disclosed: the tenants, the lease term and expiry, the rent, the bond arrangements, and any known disputes or breaches. A buyer purchasing a tenanted property needs to understand what they are stepping into on day one of ownership.

Body corporate information (for community title schemes). For units, townhouses, and lot-owned schemes, the disclosure obligations are substantial. You must provide the community management statement, a body corporate disclosure statement, minutes of recent meetings, the current body corporate financial position, any known levies (regular and special), any ongoing disputes, and any planned works or insurance claims. Missing or late body corporate information is the single most common cause of failed settlements in Brisbane's unit market.

Rates, water, and council charges. Outstanding amounts, the rate notice cycle, and any known objections or reviews in progress all need to be disclosed. A buyer will be responsible for rates and water from settlement onwards (with adjustments to the contract date), so they need to know the current status.

Zoning and planning. The prescribed certificate regime handles the basic zoning information, but sellers should also disclose any known development applications, building approvals, or compliance issues with the property. If the previous owner built a deck, a granny flat, or a carport without approval, that is a material disclosure. An unapproved structure is a real risk to a buyer, and discovering it post-settlement is a common source of disputes.

The common traps

Unapproved renovations. In Brisbane's inner east, a significant share of houses have had work done over the last 40 years that was either never approved, or approved under a different scope than what was actually built. A deck added by a previous owner, a bathroom converted from a sleepout, an internal wall moved to open up a living area: all of these require a building approval. If you inherited the work when you bought the home, it is now your problem when you sell. Get a building certificate (sometimes called a building act certificate) from council or a private certifier if you have any doubt. It can be obtained retrospectively in many cases, but it takes time and can require remedial work.

Pool safety timing. Pool safety certificates are valid for two years for non-shared pools. Sellers often assume their certificate is current when it has in fact expired. Check the date and arrange a new inspection if needed, well before listing. If the pool is non-compliant, the work required to bring it up to standard (fencing, CPR signs, latches, gates) can take a week or more, and you need that buffer.

Body corporate records requests. Ordering body corporate records takes time, often one to three weeks, and the body corporate manager is entitled to charge a fee. If you leave this to the week before listing, you will be waiting on documents while your campaign runs and will end up signing a contract before the records are actually available, which is precisely the situation the statutory regime is designed to prevent. Order body corporate records the moment you decide to sell.

Asbestos and other latent defects. Queensland does not have a blanket statutory duty to disclose every latent defect (a structural crack, a roof leak, a termite history), but if you are asked directly, you cannot mislead. In practice, this means a reasonable buyer question about past pest issues, water damage, or major repairs should be answered honestly. The Form 2 framework also captures certain specific items, and a solicitor can advise on your specific circumstances. The safe approach: if you know about it and a buyer is likely to want to know, disclose it.

Flood and overland flow. Many inner-Brisbane suburbs have pockets affected by the 2011 or 2022 floods, and flood history is frequently a live concern for buyers. While Queensland's statutory regime does not require a stand-alone flood disclosure in the way some other jurisdictions do, misleading a buyer about flood history is not defensible, and it is far better to disclose it openly (with context, such as what mitigation has been done, or clarification that overland flow is different from river flooding) than to have a buyer discover it through a flood report after they have signed.

Voluntary disclosures that protect your sale

Beyond the statutory list, there are several voluntary disclosures that experienced sellers make because they reduce the risk of the contract unravelling later. None of these are legally required, but each of them, when handled well, strengthens the buyer's confidence and reduces the chance of a renegotiation or termination after the building and pest inspection.

Recent inspection reports. If you have had your own building and pest inspection done pre-listing, or if you have recent reports from previous works, consider making them available. A buyer who sees the seller is transparent is more likely to accept minor issues without renegotiating.

Renovation history. A one-page summary of what has been done to the house, when, and by whom (with approval numbers if relevant) removes a lot of uncertainty. Buyers value it, and it speeds up the solicitor review process.

Pool and service history. For pools, a log of maintenance and any recent works. For major systems (air conditioning, hot water, solar), the age and service history. None of this is expected, but all of it makes the property feel cared-for rather than unknown.

Neighbour and street context. If there is anything about the neighbourhood that a reasonable buyer should know (a major development application on an adjoining property, a known parking issue, a busy early-morning delivery pattern on the street), it is better to disclose it early than to have the buyer discover it in their first week.

The pre-listing disclosure timeline

A well-run disclosure process starts 4 to 6 weeks before listing, not the day you sign the agency agreement. Here is the rough sequence.

Six weeks before listing: instruct your solicitor or conveyancer, order the title search and prescribed certificates, order body corporate records (if applicable), and confirm pool safety certificate status. For units, this is also when you identify any outstanding body corporate matters (a pending special levy, an ongoing dispute, a forthcoming insurance claim) that will need to be addressed or disclosed.

Four weeks before listing: obtain a current building act certificate if there is any doubt about unapproved works, book a pre-listing building and pest inspection if you want one, and compile your renovation history summary. Your solicitor drafts the Form 2 disclosure statement based on the information gathered.

Two weeks before listing: finalise the Form 2 and all accompanying certificates so they are ready to be given to any buyer who expresses serious interest. In practice, buyers in Queensland now expect to see the disclosure pack before or at the point of making an offer. Not having it ready means you either delay their offer or risk an invalidly formed contract.

During the campaign: your agent hands the disclosure pack to every buyer moving toward an offer, and your solicitor keeps the information current if anything changes (for example, a body corporate notice issued mid-campaign, or a council rates notice with a material change).

What happens if you get it wrong

The consequences of a defective disclosure are significant. The buyer can terminate the contract at any time up to settlement and recover their deposit in full. That is not a small matter: it means a seller who made an honest oversight can lose a contract four weeks into the process, have to remarket the property (with the disadvantage of a failed contract showing up in portal history), and potentially face a materially worse outcome on the next attempt. In some cases, particularly if the non-disclosure was knowing or reckless, there can be further legal consequences.

In practice, most disclosure issues are avoidable. They come from sellers underestimating the scope of the regime, leaving the preparation too late, or assuming that what was true when they bought the property is still true today. An experienced local solicitor working with an experienced local agent catches most of these issues well before they become a problem. It is worth spending the money on both.

The summary checklist

Before your property hits the market, you (and your solicitor) should have the following ready:

1. Title search, plan of survey, and all prescribed certificates for your property type. 2. A completed Form 2 disclosure statement. 3. Current pool safety certificate, if applicable. 4. Full body corporate disclosure pack, if a community title scheme. 5. Current building act certificate or clear confirmation that all structures are approved. 6. Disclosure of any known unregistered encumbrances or statutory notices. 7. Tenancy details, if tenanted. 8. Rates and water notices. 9. Known flood or overland flow history. 10. A voluntary renovation and service history summary (strongly recommended, not required).

If all ten items are in place before your first open home, the statutory framework is a non-issue and your contract process runs smoothly. If you are missing items when the buyer's solicitor starts asking, you will be scrambling, and that is where problems start.