Section 52A of the Conveyancing Act 1919 and the Conveyancing (Sale of Land) Regulation 2005 put a legal obligation on the vendor (seller) to disclose prescribed information about the property (Being Statutory Disclosure) before the sale of a property is completed.
“Disclosure” is sharing information and facts about a property between the vendor (seller) and the buyer. This includes information that wouldn’t ordinarily be known under normal circumstances. This information is often referred to as material fact and is simply letting all of the interested parties know of information that can impact the buying or selling of a property.
Key Points of Statutory Disclosure
- Purpose: To ensure buyers are aware of important details about the property that may affect their decision to purchase.
- Provided in the contract: Often included in the contract of sale or vendor disclosure statement.
- Failure to disclose: Can lead to the buyer having rights to rescind the contract, or even sue for damages.
Deciding what should be disclosed and what should can be a bit of a grey area. There are a number of important statutory disclosure requirements that are to be included into a marketing contract by the seller and, failure to comply with these requirements could lead to the sale being annulled and/or damages being paid to the buyer. The main requirements are hidden/latent defects, easements or rights of way, tenancies, approvals etc.
Details that are generally not required to be disclosed are ones that are not relevant to the actual property. A dispute with your neighbour over a barking dog that was resolved years ago for example, or a recent family tragedy that has led you to sell are things that you legally do not need to disclose.
