For most property purchasers, settlement day carries a single emotional anchor: the keys. The months of inspections, finance negotiations, legal work, and waiting distil, in the popular imagination, to the moment when a set of keys changes hands and the door of a new home swings open.

The legal rea...

When you sell or lease a property in Australia, there are already many things you are legally required to disclose: zoning, encumbrances, defects in title, building work history. Within the next few years, energy efficiency is set to join that list for residential properties across the country inclu...

Say the word “easement” to most property owners and they will picture a right of carriageway the shared driveway to a battle-axe block or an easement for drainage, sewer or electricity running under the backyard. These everyday easements are the ones that show up on title searches and in conveyanc...

For many homeowners in the Sutherland Shire, the water view is the whole point – the reason a property was bought and a large part of what it is worth. So it is a genuine grievance when a neighbour’s row of trees, left to grow unchecked, quietly swallows the view of the bay. Can anything be done? ...

Borrowing against property is one of the most common transactions in Australia from a family home loan to a multi-million dollar commercial facility. Most of the time the arrangement runs its course without incident. But when a borrower cannot repay, the consequences can be swift and severe: a mor...

Families make promises about property all the time. “Move in and look after the place it’ll be yours one day.” “Do the renovations, and you can live here as long as you like.” These assurances are usually made with real affection and every intention of following through. But intentions change, cir...

Few things sour a neighbourly relationship faster than a fence. And one of the most common and most costly mistakes a property owner can make is to assume that the fence marks the legal boundary and that whatever is on “their” side of the survey line is theirs to deal with as they please. A recent d...

Families help each other out, especially when money is tight. A relative steps in, buys the house so the bank can’t take it, and everyone understands or thinks they understand that the arrangement is temporary and that the family will get the home back one day. Years pass. Nothing is written down. A...

Strata disputes in small schemes often arise not from major building defects, but from everyday decisions about maintenance and expenditure. A 2021 decision of the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT), Taylor v The Owners Strata Plan No 53919 [2021] NSWCATCD 2, provides important guidance fo...

Strata disputes involving water damage are increasingly common in New South Wales, particularly as many strata schemes age and infrastructure deteriorates. Section 106 of the Strata Schemes Management Act 2015 (NSW) imposes a strict duty on the Owners Corporation (OC) to maintain and repair common p...

In the ever-evolving landscape of Australian property law, few cases illustrate the practical application of equitable principles in co-ownership disputes better than Parkas v Shankar [2025] NSWSC 1140. This New South Wales Supreme Court decision explores a long-standing family property dispute that...

Disputes over trees growing on a neighbouring property can be emotionally charged and legally complex. Homeowners often face difficult questions when overhanging branches or falling limbs cause damage or raise concerns about safety. In these situations, Part 2 of the Trees (Disputes Between Neighbou...