You can….but you probably shouldn’t.

You can….but you probably shouldn’t.

When selling a property, there is always a debate over what works should be completed prior to sale, versus what can bear leaving for a buyer after purchase. Painting is a common one – do you touch up the nicks and knocks or go all out for a full fresh look? Replace the daggy carpets with new, or let the next owner make their own choice for cream, grey or something completely different.

From a practical perspective, it can be tempting to do the bare minimum – after all, its not like buyers have a lot of choice at the moment – as long as its liveable its probably going to sell. You WILL get an outcome. But there is a big difference in the value of that outcome between a property looking a bit past its due date versus one dressed for the ball. Buyers might be choice-poor but they are also time poor, and willing to pay a premium for a job well done (that they don’t have to touch).

Painting and flooring might be very optional upgrades, but the standard residential contract has 2 requirements which, while TECHNICALLY optional really shouldn’t be treated as such in the majority of circumstances.

First up, we have the requirement for compliant smoke alarms – compliant being the operative word here. Brought in all the way back in January of 2022 for existing builds, all residential properties must have compliant smoke alarms installed to current standards – which sits at one alarm in every bedroom, as well as halls outside of bedrooms, and a minimum of one per level (in broad strokes). These can’t be the old $20 9V options from Woolies anymore either. Either hardwired or wireless with a 10 year battery, they also need to be interconnected so if 1 goes off, they all do. Leasing? No choice – no alarms = no tenancy. But for sale, you can technically tick the “NO” box on whether its been done. There is a cost though, which depending on the scale and price of home can prove expensive – absent compliancy the buyer gets an automatic refund of 0.15% of the purchase price at settlement. That’s $750 back on a $500,000 purchase as an example.

More serious is pool safety. By not having a safety certificate at contract, you need to issue a form 36 Notice of No Pool Safety Certificate with the contract. It might not seem like a big deal at the time, but the onus then goes on a buyer to have it ready within 60 days of settlement, or face potentially big fines. While there might be legitimate financial reasons a seller can’t do it themselves, figure on a buyer seeking a big discount for the effort and cost in their court. Safety is of course also a big concern, but that merits more words than this column will allow for today.