In short
Most ACT home sales need a building and compliance inspection report from the seller, based on an inspection no earlier than 3 months before the home is first advertised. Anyone independent with at least $500,000 of professional indemnity insurance can write it. Buyers can't rely on it for any contract entered into more than 180 days after the inspection.
Key takeaways
- Timing: the inspection must be no earlier than 3 months before the home is first advertised.
- Reliance: none for any contract entered into more than 180 days after the inspection date.
- The writer doesn't have to be an engineer, but must be independent and hold at least $500,000 of professional indemnity insurance.
- For every structure, the report gives a view on whether it substantially complies with approved plans, and whether approval was needed.
- The buyer reimburses the seller for the first report at completion.
What documents must an ACT seller provide?
Section 9 of the Civil Law (Sale of Residential Property) Act 2003 lists the documents a seller must provide. For each home, they include the building and compliance report and these others.
| Document | Timing or condition |
|---|---|
| Building conveyancing inquiry documents | Required for each residence |
| Energy efficiency rating (EER) statement | Given before contract. A seller who doesn't is liable to pay the buyer 0.5% of the price |
| Building and compliance inspection report | From an inspection no earlier than 3 months before the property was first advertised |
| Pest inspection report | If the home is occupied, on the same 3-month rule |
| Asbestos assessment report or asbestos advice | Required for each residence |
| Pool documents, if there's a pool | A pool disclosure statement, a certificate of occupancy no more than 5 years old, a compliance status certificate, or a Ministerial exemption certificate |
Sources: Civil Law (Sale of Residential Property) Act 2003 ss 9 and 23; ACT Planning pool safety reforms page.
Three kinds of home need no building report: a class A unit, a new home that has never been occupied, and one to be built before completion (s 9(2)).
Who can write the building and compliance report?
Anyone who passes two tests. The law sets no qualification for the writer (Act s 9(3); Regulation s 11), so it doesn't have to be an engineer. Engineers, builders and building inspectors can all do it.
- Independent: not a family member of the seller, the agent or the lawyer, not in their firm, and not in a business they profit from.
- Insured: professional indemnity insurance of at least $500,000.
We don't write seller's reports. We do the engineering around them: assessing structures a report flags, and structural inspections for buyers who want a closer look before they sign.
What must the report contain?
Section 7 of the Regulation sets the content. The report must:
- be completed to AS 4349.1, the standard for visual pre-purchase inspections, as modified for the ACT (the minor-defect rating clauses come out, and a cosmetic and minor maintenance assessment goes in);
- show the inspection and report dates prominently;
- give the writer's professional indemnity details;
- state that its details go on a public register within 7 days;
- state that "no reliance may be placed on the report for any contract entered into more than 180 days after the date of the inspection", and when reliance may be placed.
Every structure, and its approvals
For every structure on the block, section 7(6) adds four things:
- copies of the approved plans, building approval, building permit and certificate of occupancy;
- the writer's view on whether the structure "substantially complies" with the approved plans;
- whether building approval is required;
- if not, whether development approval is required.
This is where decks, pergolas, carports and extensions built without approval get flagged.
What the law doesn't say is whether the report must assess structural adequacy. It's a visual inspection report focused on condition, approvals and compliance with plans. A structure marked as not matching its approvals tells you about the paperwork. Whether it's sound is a separate question.
How long is a building and compliance report valid for?
There's no single "valid for" period. Two time rules apply instead, and both run from the inspection date.
Illustrative example
An inspection on 2 February 2027 suits a home first advertised on 20 April 2027, because that's within 3 months. A buyer who signs a contract in mid-August 2027 is more than 180 days past the inspection, so they can't rely on that report.
The pest inspection report follows the same 3-month inspection rule. So when people ask how long a building and pest inspection is valid for in the ACT, the answer is these two dates, not a fixed shelf life.
Who pays for the report, and who is liable if it's wrong?
The seller pays up front and the buyer pays it back. The writer carries the risk if it's wrong.
- Reimbursement: at completion, the buyer reimburses the seller for the cost of the first report (Act s 18).
- Liability: if a report "is false or misleading in a material particular or is otherwise prepared without the exercise of reasonable skill and care", the person who prepared it is liable to compensate the buyer (s 19).
- The register: the Territory keeps a building and pest inspection information register, holding each inspection for 1 year (Regulation s 12).
- Energy rating: a seller who doesn't give the EER statement before contract is liable to pay the buyer 0.5% of the price (s 23).
What if the report flags a structure built without approval?
A flag means the structure doesn't match approved plans, or never had approval. It doesn't say whether the structure is sound or what it would take to put right.
The first question is often whether it was ever exempt. Small decks, pergolas and carports can be exempt from building approval within set limits, and our guide to carport, pergola and deck approval in the ACT sets those limits out.
If it wasn't exempt, an unapproved structure assessment looks at the structure itself: its footings, framing and connections, and what it needs. It starts at $690 + GST ($759 inc GST). Sellers often want that answer before listing. Buyers want it before they sign.
When to call a structural engineer
Call an engineer when the report raises a structural question it can't answer.
- The report notes cracking, movement or sagging. A crack and footing movement report finds the cause and says whether it matters. From $1,090 + GST ($1,199 inc GST).
- You're buying and want a closer structural look. A pre-purchase structural inspection checks footings, walls, framing and signs of movement before you sign. From $790 + GST ($869 inc GST).
- You're selling and a structure has been flagged. An unapproved structure assessment tells you what it needs before buyers start asking.
Prices are the same anywhere in Canberra, whether it's a 1970s brick-veneer house in Belconnen or a newer home in Gungahlin, and across the border in Queanbeyan. We don't write the seller's report, sell repairs or recommend builders, so our view of a flagged structure doesn't depend on any work that follows.
Has the report flagged a structure?
Send the report page and a few photos. We reply with a fixed quote in under 20 minutes on average, during business hours.
Sources
- Civil Law (Sale of Residential Property) Act 2003 (ACT). Sections 9, 18, 19 and 23
- Civil Law (Sale of Residential Property) Regulation 2004 (ACT). Sections 7, 11 and 12: report content, writer, register
- ACT Planning: Home swimming pool safety reforms. Pool documents on sale
- ACT Planning: Check if you need a building approval (BA). Exempt decks, pergolas and carports
