“Reasonable Endeavours” in Off-the-Plan Contracts
Key Lessons from Kakkad & Ors v Treana Holdings Pty Ltd & Ors By Elias Farah & Jennifer Novak The District Court of South Australia’s recent decision in Kakkad & Ors v Treana Holdings Pty Ltd & Ors [2024] SADC 161 (“Kakkad”) handed down on 11 December 2024 offers crucial insights into the interpretation and…
FRCGW Changes in SA: What Vendors Need to Know About Foreign Resident Capital Gains Withholding
By Jennifer Novak & Erin Freebairn Navigating capital gains tax (CGT) can be complex for property investors and vendors in South Australia, especially for foreign residents. Significant updates to the Foreign Resident Capital Gains Withholding Regime (FRCGW), effective 1 January 2025, aim to enhance compliance and tighten tax integrity. Below, we outline these changes and…
Estate Laws Revamped: Understanding Australia’s Succession Act Revisions
By Alison Tanzer As of 1 January 2025, the Succession Act 2023 (SA) will come into operation, consolidating and updating the laws governing Wills, Estates, and Inheritance Claims (for further or better provision from an estate). This new legislation will replace the Wills Act 1936 (SA), Probate and Administration Act 1919 (SA), and Inheritance (Family…
Unlocking Opportunities: South Australia’s New Stamp Duty Relief
By Kimberley Garcia Revenue SA’s Stamp Duty Relief package for eligible first home buyers on 15 June 2023 State Budget is the most recent development for those looking to break into the property market. This Stamp Duty Relief package is only available to Purchasers who have entered their contracts from 15 June 2023. On Tuesday,…
Repairing the Lease Agreement: Demystifying Structural and Capital Repair Obligations in Commercial Leases
By Graham Hall Property inevitability requires repair, maintenance and replacement from time to time during the term of a lease. It is quite common for disputes to arise between landlords and tenants when repairs need to be undertaken in relation to a premises. What are structural and capital repairs? A repair is generally defined as…
Navigating Off-the-Plan Sunset Date Clauses
Do we require greater protection in South Australia? By Erin Freebairn & Jennifer Novak Sunset date clauses in “off-the-plan” contracts are intended to offer security and protection for both developers and buyers, but there has been increasing misuse of these clauses, whereby developers unreasonably terminate contracts during the construction process. This is particularly problematic where…
Everything You Need to Know About New Building Concessions and Exemptions in 2024
South Australia is introducing a series of new Livable Housing Design Standard (LHDS), energy efficiency and condensation provisions and building concessions, effective 1 October 2024. These new provisions comprise part of the second implementation stage of the National Construction Code (NCC) Series 2022. The Government will publish a Ministerial Building Standard detailing the circumstances in…
What Happens to My Home?
Understanding Major Changes to Succession Legislation By Robyn Nayda The Succession Bill 2022 is expected to be enacted as legislation in the near future. The Bill proposes the most comprehensive overhaul of legislation relating to wills, deceased estates and estate litigation in over 30 years. Whilst the Bill proposes wide-reaching changes relating to succession law…
Why is Woolworths Building Apartments? Mixed-Use Developments Could Redefine Urban Living
How Mixed-Use Developments Could Redefine Urban Living By Camilla Wolfe-Barry In response to changes in shopping behaviour, supermarket giant Woolworths is pursuing mixed-use developments to build apartments above their retail locations. Woolworths currently has a handful of these mixed-use projects in the pipeline, but like other property developers, including those in South Australia, they are…
No-Cause Evictions Targeted By SA’s Proposed Changes to Leasing Laws
Earlier today, Consumer and Business Services announced that South Australian renters will be protected from so-called no-cause evictions if the State Government’s proposed rental reform passes Parliament. Where did this come from? In mid-2022, the South Australian government launched a campaign, chaired by the Minister for Consumer and Business Affairs Andrea Michaels and Commissioner…