Stage 04 of 5 · One to four weeks, and shorter if you bought at auction
Offer and formal approval
From the moment you have a contract on a specific property to unconditional approval on that property.
What gets decided here
- Auction or private treaty?
At auction the contract is unconditional on the fall of the hammer: no cooling-off, no finance clause, and the deposit is payable on the day. Private treaty usually allows a finance condition and, in most states, a short cooling-off period. The two require completely different levels of preparation.
- Does the valuation agree with the price?
The lender values the property for its own purposes and lends against its figure, not yours. A valuation below the purchase price means you cover the gap in cash, which is the most common late surprise in the whole process.
- Have you had the contract reviewed before signing?
A conveyancer or solicitor reads the contract, the title, and any strata or planning records. Doing this before you sign is normal; doing it afterwards is how people discover a restriction they cannot live with.
- What conditions are written in?
Subject to finance, subject to a satisfactory building and pest inspection, and specific dates for each. Verbal assurances are not conditions.
Before this stage ends
- Contract of sale reviewed by your conveyancer or solicitor before signing
- Building and pest inspection booked, and the report read in full
- Lender valuation ordered and the result confirmed in writing
- Finance condition and its date confirmed in the contract
- Deposit funds available in a form the agent will accept on the day
Where people slip
- Bidding at auction on conditional approval, then having the valuation come in short with no way out of the contract.
- Missing the finance clause date by a few days and losing the protection it gave you.
- Assuming the building and pest report is a formality and not reading the qualifications in it.
Who sets the rules here
General information about how the Australian home buying and lending process works. Thresholds, concessions and scheme eligibility are set by federal, state and territory agencies and change; each page links to the agency that sets the rule. Reviewed 17 August 2026.