From Offer to Keys: What Actually Happens When You Buy a Brisbane Investment Property
The day you sign a Queensland contract starts a clock running on several deadlines at once, cooling-off, building and pest, finance, and settlement, each with real consequences if missed. This guide walks through what actually happens, in order, from the moment you sign to the day you get the keys, using the standard REIQ contract every Brisbane buyer will encounter.
- 01 The contract date is the starting gun for everything
- 02 The full timeline, from signing to settlement
- 03 The cooling-off period, and what it actually protects
- 04 The building and pest clause, and what “reasonable” actually means
- 05 The finance clause
- 06 Settlement day, and the quirk most buyers don’t know about
- 07 Frequently asked questions
Most residential property sales in Queensland commonly use a standard REIQ contract, published by the Real Estate Institute of Queensland, or a contract based on it, including most investment purchases. Special conditions, auction contracts, developer contracts, off-the-plan contracts, or a lawyer-drafted contract can all materially change the position described in this article, so always check the actual contract you’ve been given rather than assuming it matches the standard form exactly. The contract date recorded in the signed contract is the single most important date in the entire transaction, every other deadline in the process counts forward from that one date, not from when you made your offer or when the property was listed.
The contract date is the starting gun for everything
Once the contract date is set, a handful of clocks start running simultaneously: cooling-off, the building and pest inspection deadline, the finance approval deadline, and the settlement date itself. None of these are sequential, they overlap, which is exactly why missing one without realising can quietly put the others at risk too.
This phrase appears in the standard REIQ contract for a reason. Queensland property contracts generally treat these deadlines strictly, unless amended by special condition. Missing a deadline, even by hours, can put you in breach of the contract, and the consequences can include forfeiting your deposit. This isn’t a clause to take casually, and it’s a large part of why most buyers engage a solicitor or conveyancer the same day they sign, not weeks later.
The full timeline, from signing to settlement
The exact number of days for each condition is negotiated between buyer and seller before signing, and varies from contract to contract, but a common structure looks roughly like this:
Unless the contract states business days, negotiated condition periods may be calendar days. Always check the actual wording in the Reference Schedule rather than assuming, since this single distinction can shift a deadline by several days either way.
Illustrative timeline based on commonly used REIQ contract periods. Every figure above is negotiated individually between buyer and seller and will vary by contract. Do not assume agent-pre-filled dates are suitable for your lender, inspector or conveyancer, check each one against your own circumstances before signing.
The cooling-off period, and what it actually protects
In Queensland, residential buyers are entitled to a five-business-day cooling-off period, starting the day you receive a copy of the contract signed by both parties, not the day you sign your own copy. Weekends and public holidays don’t count toward the five days, and the period ends at 5pm sharp on the fifth business day.
You can terminate for any reason during this window, no explanation required, but if you do, the seller may deduct a termination penalty of up to 0.25% of the purchase price from your deposit. Cooling-off does not apply if you bought the property at auction, or for certain follow-up private treaty contracts entered into before 5pm on the second business day after an unsuccessful auction where you were a registered bidder at that auction. A buyer can also choose to waive or shorten the cooling-off period in writing, which can make an offer more attractive to a seller, but removes this particular safety net entirely.
Since 1 August 2025, Queensland’s Property Law Act 2023 has required sellers to provide a Seller Disclosure Statement before a buyer signs the contract. This disclosure regime operates separately from cooling-off. If the seller does not comply with the disclosure regime, or there is a material mistake or omission in the disclosure documents, a buyer may have termination rights before settlement, depending on the specific circumstances, though not every disclosure error will automatically allow termination. This is a genuinely useful additional protection, but it’s worth getting legal advice on your specific disclosure documents rather than assuming a particular outcome.
The building and pest clause, and what “reasonable” actually means
Clause 4 of the standard REIQ contract, unless amended by special condition, makes the sale conditional on the buyer obtaining a written building report and a written pest report, which can be a single combined report, by an agreed inspection date. This clause is only active if an inspection date has actually been filled in on the contract, it isn’t automatic.
If the report comes back unsatisfactory, you can terminate, but only if you’re acting reasonably, and this is the part most buyers underestimate. Minor or cosmetic issues will not usually justify termination on their own. The issue does not necessarily need to be catastrophic, but the buyer’s decision must be reasonable in light of the report, the property and the specific contract wording. If you terminate over something later considered unreasonable, you risk losing your deposit and potentially facing a claim for damages, so getting legal advice before deciding to terminate on this basis is genuinely worthwhile.
If you do want to terminate, you generally need to give the seller written notice by 5pm on the inspection date itself under the standard contract terms, though the exact deadline depends on the wording of your specific contract. Miss that deadline, and the seller may be entitled to terminate instead, depending on the specific clause wording.
The finance clause
If your purchase is subject to finance, the clause needs three specific things filled in for it to be legally valid and enforceable: an actual loan amount, the name of your financier, and a date or period for obtaining approval. If you’re buying with cash, this section should be clearly marked as not applicable, to avoid any ambiguity later.
Your finance needs to be approved on terms satisfactory to you by the finance date. A pre-approval or approval in principle may not be enough if it remains subject to valuation, mortgage insurer approval, final credit checks or other material conditions, so don’t assume an early conditional approval automatically satisfies the clause. If finance is not approved by the finance date, and you have complied with the requirements of the finance clause, your solicitor may be able to terminate under the contract and seek return of your deposit, but buyers should not simply assume they can terminate without following the specific notice requirements and timing set out in the contract. One practical tip worth knowing: it’s generally sensible to have your building and pest inspection date earlier than your finance date, since if an inspection turns up an issue that leads to a renegotiated price, your finance approval may need to be reworked anyway to reflect the new figure.
Settlement day, and the quirk most buyers don’t know about
Once all your conditions, cooling-off, building and pest, finance, are satisfied, the contract becomes unconditional, and you move toward settlement. At this point you’ll typically pay a balance deposit, on top of whatever initial deposit you paid at signing, and the bulk of your remaining funds need to be available, generally a few business days ahead of settlement itself, so your solicitor or conveyancer can disburse everything correctly on the day.
Most Queensland settlements today happen electronically through PEXA, the national electronic conveyancing platform, rather than the old-style face-to-face exchange. Before settlement, your solicitor will typically conduct title searches at Titles Queensland to identify registered mortgages, caveats, easements or other title interests that must be dealt with before or at settlement, and to verify the land description matches what’s in your contract.
Under the standard REIQ contract, unless amended by special condition, either the buyer or the seller can extend the settlement date by up to five business days without needing the other party’s consent, provided written notice is given before 4pm on the scheduled settlement date. This is a genuine, lesser-known piece of Queensland contract law, and while it’s rarely used, it can be a useful safety valve if something unexpected, a delayed bank transfer, a last-minute hiccup, threatens to derail settlement on the day itself.
The dates in your contract aren’t just paperwork, they’re the actual mechanism that protects you. Know what each one does before you sign, not after.
The standard REIQ contract gives Queensland buyers genuine, meaningful protection through cooling-off, building and pest, and finance conditions, but every one of those protections is time-limited and strictly enforced. The single most useful thing an investor can do before signing is confirm that the building and pest, finance, and settlement dates in the Reference Schedule are realistic for their actual situation, not just accept whatever the agent has pre-filled. A solicitor or conveyancer reviewing the contract before you sign, not after, is the difference between these clauses genuinely protecting you and finding out too late that a deadline has already passed. This article describes how the standard contract typically operates; always have your own contract reviewed by a licensed conveyancer or solicitor before signing, since special conditions can alter any of the timelines described here.
Frequently asked questions
This article describes a standard Real Estate Institute of Queensland (REIQ) contract, or a contract based on it, as commonly used for residential property sales in Queensland, including investment property purchases. Special conditions, auction contracts, developer contracts, off-the-plan contracts, or a lawyer-drafted contract can override or materially alter the standard terms described here. Cooling-off period length, termination penalty, and auction exemptions are sourced from the Queensland Government’s official guidance on cooling-off periods for residential property contracts. The Property Law Act 2023 seller disclosure regime, effective 1 August 2025, and its interaction with cooling-off rights, is sourced from Queensland Government and conveyancing industry guidance current at the time of writing; whether a specific disclosure defect gives rise to termination rights depends on the individual circumstances. Standard timeframes for building and pest, finance, and settlement conditions described in this article (including the 5 business day cooling-off period, common 7-day building and pest periods, 10 to 21 day finance periods, and 30-day settlement periods) are illustrative and based on commonly used contract terms; every individual contract is negotiated separately between buyer and seller, may use calendar days rather than business days, and actual periods may differ materially from those described here. The “reasonableness” standard for terminating under the building and pest clause reflects general legal commentary on REIQ contract interpretation and is not a substitute for legal advice on a specific property or report. The settlement date extension provision (up to five business days without consent) is sourced from standard REIQ contract clause commentary and applies under the standard contract unless amended by special condition. This article is general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Every property contract should be reviewed by a licensed solicitor or conveyancer before signing, as special conditions, the specific property, and individual contract wording can all materially change the rights and deadlines described in this article.