Registered and unregistered land

Land in a new estate is frequently sold before it legally exists as a separate lot. The subdivision has been approved and the lots are drawn, but the plan of subdivision has not yet been registered with the state land titles office. Until it is, there is no title to transfer, no settlement, and nothing to build on.

What registration involves

The developer must complete the civil works to the standard the approval requires — roads, drainage, services, often landscaping — have them accepted, and then have the plan registered. Only then can settlement occur and construction start.

Why the date moves

Weather, contractor availability, service authority connection timing, and the approval process itself. Titles dates in estate contracts are commonly expressed as an expected period rather than a fixed date, and moving is normal rather than exceptional. Plan on the basis that it can move.

What it does to your build

Your build price has a shelf life. A building quote is usually valid for a stated period. If titles slip past it, the price may be re-quoted at current rates. Ask what happens to your price if titles are delayed, and get the answer in the contract rather than in an email.

Your finance approval has a shelf life too. Loan approvals expire and have to be re-assessed, against your circumstances and the lender's criteria at that time, not the ones when you applied.

Your living costs continue. If you have sold or are renting, a slipping titles date extends that period with no offsetting progress.

Questions to ask before you sign

What is the sunset date, and what happens at it — for you and for the developer? What stage are the civil works actually at? Is the price in my building contract fixed to titles or to a date? What is the re-quote mechanism if titles move?

The related trap

Some estates have a design covenant and a builder panel. Both are legitimate and both constrain your choices, sometimes significantly. Read them before you commit to a builder, not after — a covenant can rule out a design, a cladding choice or a roof pitch you have already paid to have drawn.

See also house and land packages.