A practical checklist for buying property in Victoria, from your first inspection to picking up the keys.
Most of the expensive mistakes in a purchase happen in the few days around signing, when there’s pressure to commit and not much time to check the details. Work through the list below at your own pace.
When you’re ready for us to act for you, fill in our Purchaser Questionnaire online and it goes straight to our conveyancing team. Selling as well? See our selling a house checklist.
What the questionnaire asks
- Who’s buying, and how you’ll hold the title
- The property, the contract and your key dates
- Your lender, finance approval and insurance
- First home buyer and stamp duty eligibility
- Anything you’d like us to look into
You can upload your Contract of Sale and Section 32 at the end. Everything you send is secure and only seen by Hendersons Legal staff.
Your buying checklist, stage by stage
Tick these off as you go. If something doesn’t make sense, leave it and ask us.
Before you sign or bid
- Verify your identity online through InfoTrack. We send you a secure link as soon as you enquire.
- Have a lawyer review the Contract of Sale and Section 32 Vendor Statement before you sign, or before auction day.
- Get finance pre-approval so you know your limit.
- Book a building and pest inspection.
- Compare the title boundaries with the fences on the ground.
- Check the Section 32 for easements, covenants, planning overlays and owners corporation fees.
- Work out your stamp duty, and any first home buyer exemption, concession or grant you’re entitled to.
- Ask for the special conditions you need (finance, building inspection, early access) before you sign. Once you’ve signed, changes need the seller’s agreement.
In the days after you sign
- Note when your cooling-off period ends. For most private sales it’s three clear business days after you sign. It doesn’t apply at auction or to some other sales, so check with us.
- Pay the deposit on time, into the account named in the contract.
- Send us the signed contract so we can order the searches and diarise every date.
- Put the finance approval date in your calendar. If approval is running late, talk to us before that date passes.
Before settlement
- Sign your loan documents and return them to your lender promptly.
- Sign our client authorisation so we can settle online through PEXA.
- Arrange building insurance that starts no later than settlement. Many lenders won’t settle without it.
- Answer the stamp duty questions we send you, so we can lodge them with the State Revenue Office.
- Book your pre-settlement inspection, usually in the week before settlement.
- Arrange gas, electricity, water and internet from settlement day.
Settlement day
- We settle electronically through PEXA and let you know as soon as it’s done.
- The agent releases the keys once settlement is confirmed.
- The transfer is lodged with Land Use Victoria and the title is registered in your name.
Purchaser Questionnaire
Hand the paperwork to us
Our online Purchaser Questionnaire opens a file with our conveyancing team. You answer the questions once and upload your contract at the end, and we’ll be in touch to go through the next steps.
- Your answers are sent securely to our practice management system, and only Hendersons Legal staff can see them.
- Leave anything blank if you’re not sure. We’ll help you finish it.
- Upload your Contract of Sale and Section 32 securely at the end.
What happens next
- We send you a secure link to verify your identity online through InfoTrack. You’ll need your passport or driver licence.
- We go through your answers with you and confirm our scope and costs.
- Once you’ve accepted our costs agreement, we get to work on your purchase.
Rather talk it through first? Call us on (03) 9629 2211.
Documents to have ready
You don’t need all of these on day one, but the sooner we have them, the sooner we can check your dates and conditions.
Contract and Section 32
Everything the agent gave you, including special conditions and annexures.
Finance details
Your lender or broker’s contact details, and a copy of your approval once you have it.
Photo ID
A passport or driver licence. You’ll use it to verify your identity online through InfoTrack, our first step after you enquire.
Inspection reports
Your building and pest reports, and notes on anything the inspector flagged.
Duty and grant details
What we need to assess first home buyer, principal place of residence or foreign purchaser duty.
Things buyers often miss
Cooling off doesn’t cover auctions
If you buy at auction, or in the three business days either side of an advertised auction, you’re usually bound as soon as you sign. Get the contract reviewed before the day.
Finance dates are strict
A finance clause only protects you if you act before the approval date in the contract. Once that date passes, you may lose the right to end the contract.
Foreign purchasers pay more duty
If any buyer is a foreign person, additional duty usually applies and FIRB approval may be needed. Tell us early so it can be factored in.
Deposit rules are changing
Reforms that became law in September 2026 change how a deposit can be released before settlement and when sellers must make the Section 32 available. They start on a date still to be set, no later than 1 June 2027. We’ll tell you whether they affect your purchase.
Common questions from buyers
Before you sign, have a lawyer review the Contract of Sale and the Section 32 Vendor Statement, get finance pre-approval, and arrange building and pest inspections. Check the title boundaries, zoning and any owners corporation details, and work out your stamp duty. The checklist above sets out each step in order.
For most private sales of residential property, you have three clear business days after signing to end the contract. If you do, the seller can keep $100 or 0.2% of the price, whichever is more. Cooling off doesn’t apply if you buy at a publicly advertised auction, in the three clear business days before or after one, or in a few other situations.
It isn’t a legal requirement. Many buyers use a lawyer because we can advise on the contract, the special conditions and your options if something goes wrong before settlement, as well as handle the transfer itself.
It opens a file with our conveyancing team. The first step is confirming your identity: we’ll send you a secure link to complete a verification of identity (VOI) online through InfoTrack. We’ll then go through your answers, confirm what you need and explain our costs. Filling in the questionnaire doesn’t commit you to anything, and we only start work once you’ve accepted our costs agreement.
Yes. Answer what you can and leave the rest. We’d rather have a partly finished questionnaire early than a perfect one the day before a deadline.
Yes. The Purchaser Questionnaire is sent over a secure, encrypted connection and goes straight into our practice management system. Only Hendersons Legal staff can see your answers, and we treat everything you tell us as confidential.