Cooling-off periods explained: how long you have to change your mind

The cooling-off period is one of the more misunderstood parts of buying property in Australia, partly because it works differently in almost every state, and partly because it is often confused with a general right to keep shopping around after signing. In reality, it is a narrow, time-limited right that belongs to the buyer, applies only to certain types of sale, and comes with a real cost if used.

The length of the cooling-off period varies noticeably by jurisdiction. Reported 2026 figures put Victoria at 3 business days, New South Wales at 5 business days, Queensland at 5 business days, the ACT at 5 business days, and the Northern Territory at 4 business days. South Australia's period is shorter again, at 2 clear business days. Western Australia and Tasmania are different again — neither has a statutory cooling-off period at all, meaning a buyer's ability to withdraw after signing in those states depends entirely on what the specific contract says, rather than a right set by law.

Where a cooling-off period does apply and a buyer chooses to use it, it is not free. A withdrawing buyer commonly forfeits a small percentage of the purchase price as a penalty rather than losing the whole deposit — reported figures put this at 0.25 percent of the price in New South Wales, Queensland and the ACT, the greater of $100 or 0.2 percent in Victoria, and a small prescribed amount in South Australia, while the Northern Territory is reported to refund the deposit in full. This penalty structure is part of why cooling-off is generally treated as a genuine safety net for a late-discovered problem, rather than a low-cost way to keep negotiating after signing.

A significant exception applies across the whole country: a property bought at auction carries no cooling-off period anywhere in Australia, and in most states that same rule extends to a contract signed immediately before or after the auction. This is one of the clearer reasons buyers are commonly advised to complete building and pest inspections, and to have finance largely sorted, before bidding at auction rather than relying on a cooling-off window that will not exist once the hammer falls.

Cooling-off is also not fixed in every case — buyer and seller can agree in writing to waive it, which happens reasonably often in competitive markets or where multiple offers are on the table and a seller wants certainty sooner. Where this happens, the buyer loses the cooling-off window entirely in exchange for the contract being treated as final from signing, so understanding that trade-off before agreeing to a waiver matters.

Because a buyer is committed once the contract is signed, cooling-off works best as a short backstop rather than a substitute for doing due diligence beforehand — this is particularly relevant for an off-the-plan purchase, where cooling-off rules and contract terms can differ further again, which our separate article on buying off the plan covers. This article describes general patterns reported across Australian jurisdictions in 2026, not legal advice for a specific contract, and cooling-off rules and penalties can change, so confirming the current position with your state's consumer affairs body or your own conveyancer before signing is worthwhile.

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