Queensland's standard REIQ contract routinely includes a finance condition, a building and pest condition, and a cooling-off period — each with its own deadline. Complying means taking the required steps and giving written notice before each deadline passes, because in the standard contract time is of the essence: deadlines are strict, and the consequence of missing one depends on the condition — building and pest silence is commonly treated as satisfaction, while a missed finance deadline leaves the contract on foot with both parties able to terminate until notice is given.
The compliance workflow, step by step
- Diarise the 5pm deadlines. As soon as you sign, record the finance date, the building and pest date, and the cooling-off end — the cut-off is 5pm on the day, because time is of the essence.
- Act diligently, straight away. Submit your loan application and documents to your lender, and book a licensed building and pest inspector, immediately.
- Get the outcome in writing early. Obtain the lender's formal decision and the inspection report with time to spare before the deadline.
- Have your conveyancer serve written notice before 5pm. If you need to rely on a condition — to terminate or seek an extension — your conveyancer must give written notice that reaches the seller's solicitor before 5pm on the date, not just tell you.
Condition by condition
- Cooling-off. A short window after signing when you can still withdraw for a penalty. If you want to use it, your notice has to reach the seller in time — see cooling-off in QLD for the exact length and the penalty.
- Finance. Apply for your loan immediately and stay in close contact with your lender. If finance isn't approved by the finance date, your conveyancer must give written notice by 5pm on that date — approved, waived, or terminating. Say nothing and the contract stays on foot with both parties holding a termination right until notice is given, leaving the deal (and your deposit) in limbo. See finance approval in QLD.
- Building and pest. Book the inspections early. By 5pm on the inspection date you need to act on the report — satisfy the condition, negotiate repairs or a price adjustment, waive it, or give written notice to terminate. Miss that deadline and it's generally taken as satisfied.
- Special conditions. Sellers or agents sometimes add their own (for example, subject to the seller's own purchase). Read each one and track its date the same way.
If you miss a deadline
Missing a deadline hands control to the contract's default rules: you can lose your exit on that ground, or leave termination rights hanging over the deal. If you then can't complete the purchase, you can be in breach — which in Queensland can mean forfeiting your deposit and exposure to the seller's further remedies (covered in what happens if a buyer defaults in QLD).
The practical answer to all of this is the same: the moment the contract is signed, have your conveyancer diarise every date and prepare the written notices with you, so nothing turns on a deadline nobody was watching.