What documents will I need?

Sale and Purchase Agreement

Having key documents ready, like a draft sales and purchase agreement, can result in a speedier sale and remove barriers for buyers.

Traditionally, a real estate agent would prepare a sale and purchase agreement, commonly using the standard TLANZ/REINZ Agreement for Sale and Purchase of Real Estate.

In a private sale, it’s common for the buyer’s lawyer to prepare the formal agreement instead, but this can create a barrier for prospective buyers.

That’s why we recommend:

1. Ask your lawyer to create a draft sale and purchase agreement instead. It includes details such as your names as the sellers, the property address, title details, deposit amount, settlement date and a list of chattels, meaning what stays with the property.
2.  Capture names and email addresses at the open home.
3.  Email your draft sale and purchase agreement, plus other key documents, to everyone who attends the open home.

Unit Titles and Body Corporate Documents

If your property has a unit title, you’re legally required to give the buyer some extra documents as part of the sale.

Apartments and townhouses are often unit titles, but not always. Your lawyer can help here. They can also prepare the required documents using information obtained from the body corporate or its manager.

If your property is a unit title (e.g. an apartment or townhouse), a pre-contract disclosure statement must be given to the buyer before they sign the sale and purchase agreement.

It includes information about body corporate levies and finances, insurance, planned maintenance and costs, meeting minutes, and any known significant problems affecting the development.

Your lawyer will usually prepare and share the pre-settlement disclosure statement at least five working days before settlement. It confirms matters such as unpaid levies, upcoming payments, legal claims or proceedings, and any changes to the body corporate rules since the pre-contract statement was provided.

Optional Documents

The following documents aren’t required when selling your home, but providing them can help answer buyers’ questions upfront and make it easier for them to decide whether to make an offer.

LIM

A LIM, or Land Information Memorandum, is a report from the local council that brings together the information it holds about a property.

When buyers make an offer on your property, it’s often conditional on receiving a satisfactory LIM report, and so you could choose to share an up-to-date LIM with prospective buyers, alongside a draft sale and purchase agreement. This can answer some of their questions upfront and help them feel more confident about considering your property.

Note: Some buyers may still prefer to order their own LIM directly from the council, both for their own peace of mind and because the information can quickly become outdated. Their lawyer can advise them on what conditions to attach to their offer.

Important: If you choose to supply a LIM, pass on the complete report exactly as it was issued by the council. Removing or changing information could mislead buyers and expose you to a legal claim.

Property Inspection Report

As the seller, you may also choose to commission a property inspection report. At the very least, make sure you understand the condition of your property.

In preparing this article, we spoke to sellers who felt some buyers had invented or exaggerated issues to negotiate the price down. Being in the know means you can separate fact from fiction and avoid being caught off guard during negotiations.

One option is to order your own property inspection report. It carries a cost but has the advantage of highlighting key issues early while giving you greater confidence in your asking price.

Note: Whether you sell privately or through an agent, issues you already know or learn about must be disclosed to prospective buyers. That might include renovations completed without council consent, a roof or wall that leaks when it rains, serious cracks or movement, or a property that has flooded before.

If you plan to share the report with prospective buyers, tell the inspector when you commission it and check how the report can be used.

Buyers may still commission their own inspection to give them independent confidence in the findings. Inspectors are generally responsible only to the person who commissioned the report, not a buyer who was simply given a copy. If a buyer is considering relying on your report, they should take legal advice and ask the inspector whether it can be reissued in their name, and what protection that would give them.