Off-Market Investment Properties in Queensland

The two kinds of off-market, and which one we have

An off-market property is one that's selling, or has already sold, without any public advertising. That definition comes from realestate.com.au's guide to off-market property sales, published 19 January 2021. You'll hear "pre-market" and "silent listing" used for the same thing.

The label covers two very different situations.

Most agencies ranking for this search sell the first one. Their pitch is years of agent contacts and the size of their private database. Fair enough. That's a real service, and it isn't ours.

We don't hold a book of silent resale listings. If a quiet sale on an existing home is what you're after, a buyer's agent with deep agent relationships will serve you better than we will.

• Silent resale. An existing home, already owned by a vendor, shopped through an agent's private buyer list instead of a portal campaign.
• Builder and developer stock. New build and house-and-land that isn't listed on Domain or realestate.com.au, sourced through FAA's builder and developer relationships.

How we get the stock, and who pays us for it

FAA Property sources new-build, house-and-land and off-market investment property across South East Queensland, which takes in Brisbane and the Sunshine Coast. Property management is Sunshine Coast only, run from the single Maroochydore office.

The access comes from working with the supply side. Builders and developers release stock through the agencies they deal with, and FAA is one of those agencies. "Wholesale", in our usage, means pricing negotiated on volume across selected developments. We don't publish a saving figure against it, because we can't source one that would survive a question about where it came from.

We're not going to tell you the stock is exclusive to us. Other agencies get allocation stock from the same builders. If someone tells you they're the only door into off-market new build, ask them which builders they mean.

The opportunities we publish on the site are examples, not the full list. Some off-market stock and wholesale pricing isn't shown publicly.

Now the part most pages leave out. FAA Property earns a commission from builders and developers when a property purchase proceeds. The strategy session itself costs you nothing. Because we're paid by the supply side, you should weigh our recommendations with that in mind.

• We source new-build, house-and-land and off-market investment property across South East Queensland.
• We plan the investment strategy around the property.
• We manage the property on the Sunshine Coast afterwards, from Maroochydore.
• We get paid by the builder or developer, on purchase.

What Queensland law makes an agent tell you before you sign

Off-market access raises a fair question about who the agent is really working for. Queensland already has a form for that question, and almost nobody writing about off-market property mentions it.

The Office of Fair Trading's "Disclosure to potential buyer" form requires a property agent or property developer to tell a potential buyer, before the contract of sale is entered into, about any relationship with a third party they refer you to and any commission received from or paid to that third party. A developer also has to disclose their own interest in the property. Per the Queensland Government guidance on disclosing interests, the form asks for the third party's full name, their relationship with the agent, and the benefit that party will get.

It runs the other way too. The Queensland Government's property development guidance says a developer must disclose to the buyer any benefits they'll pay to a third party, including fees, commissions or other benefits, money or otherwise. The examples the state names are mortgage brokers, building or pest inspectors, marketing agencies and real estate agents.

There's a penalty behind it. The same Queensland guidance on beneficial interest says that if a court finds an agent committed an offence, they may have to repay the client the amount of commission, be convicted of an offence, receive a fine or go to jail.

One more piece worth knowing. A Queensland property agent can't act for you until you appoint them in writing. Residential appointments use the OFT Form 6, commercial the Form 6A. Both parties sign it and you get a copy. Read what it says about who's paying before you put your name on it.

What you still keep when the sale is private

Queensland's buyer protections attach to the contract. Whether the property was ever advertised makes no difference to them.

Cooling off. The standard Queensland contract for buying a home carries a cooling-off period of 5 business days, per the Queensland Government's cooling-off guidance. It starts the day you get a copy of the contract signed by both parties and ends at 5pm on the fifth day. If you pull out, the seller refunds the deposit within 14 days and may deduct a penalty of up to 0.25% of the purchase price. You can waive or shorten it by written notice. Auctions have no cooling-off period, and neither does a private treaty contract entered into within 2 business days of an unsuccessful auction of that property where you were a registered bidder.

An off-market sale is a private treaty sale rather than an auction, so the cooling-off period applies to it. The state guidance names the auction exception and doesn't name off-market sales, so confirm it against your own contract with your solicitor.

Seller disclosure. From 1 August 2025, under the Property Law Act 2023 (Qld), a seller must give the buyer a seller disclosure statement in the approved form (Form 2) plus prescribed certificates before a contract of sale is signed. Seller and buyer can't contract out of it. If the seller doesn't comply, the buyer may have a right to terminate the contract at any time up to settlement.

Here's the limit of what we can honestly tell you. The Queensland Government scopes that scheme to existing residential, commercial and vacant land. Its pages don't say whether it reaches a proposed lot, an off-the-plan contract, or a house-and-land package where the dwelling isn't built yet. Most of what FAA sources is new build. So don't assume the scheme covers an FAA contract. Ask your solicitor about the contract in front of you.

• Examples of the certificates that accompany the Form 2, per the Queensland Government: a title search and survey plan, notices under the Environmental Protection, Building and Planning Acts, any tree application or order under the Neighbourhood Disputes Act, a pool safety certificate where one applies, and for community titles a community management statement and body corporate certificate.
• Examples of exemptions from the scheme, and the state lists these as examples rather than the full set: the buyer is the State, a government body, a constructing authority or a listed corporation; buyer and seller are related parties; the price is over $10 million and the buyer waives disclosure; the seller is a local council recovering unpaid rates.

Why nearly all of it is new build now

There's a tax reason the off-market stock worth a look is mostly new.

The Treasury Laws Amendment (Tax Reform No. 1) Act 2026 received Royal Assent on 26 June 2026. Schedule 2 limits negative gearing on residential property to new builds. From the 2027-28 income year, losses on an existing residential investment property acquired after 7:30pm AEST on 12 May 2026 will only be deductible against other residential property income, including capital gains. Properties held at the announcement can keep being negatively geared in future years until they're sold. Build-to-rent developments and dwellings provided as social or affordable housing are also exempt. Current-year deductibility is unchanged. That's from the Treasurer's second reading speech on the Act.

What counts as a "new build" isn't settled. The Act doesn't define it. Treasury gave examples only, dwellings constructed on vacant land or an existing property demolished and replaced with a greater number of dwellings, and said the definition of exempt housing types would move into primary legislation in a later tranche, subject to consultation. Anyone telling you today exactly which properties will qualify in 2027 is guessing.

That's general information about the rule. It isn't advice about your tax position. Get your own from someone licensed to give it.

The part of off-market nobody sells you on

Off-market carries a cost, and it's the same feature that makes it appealing.

Kirk Simpson, head of Lucra Property Group, put the seller's side to realestate.com.au in a piece published 19 January 2021: "The general rule of thumb in sales is that the more eyeballs that see your property, (that will) usually equate to a higher sale price." A seller going off-market is accepting fewer eyeballs on purpose.

The same article names two downsides for the buyer. A limited pool to choose from. And the need for patience, because off-market isn't the preferred method for most sellers.

That article is dated January 2021, so its market commentary is five years old. The definition and the trade-offs still stand.

You'll also run into percentages quoted for how much Australian property sells off-market. Ask whoever's quoting it where the number came from, and whether the source happens to sell off-market listings.

Run the numbers before you commit

Access to stock is the easy part. The numbers decide whether a property is worth buying, and they don't care how you found it.

Model the holding costs and the likely return first. Our investment property calculator does that part, and it costs nothing to use. If the numbers work, we'll show you what's actually available, including stock that isn't published on the site.

Call the office on (07) 5327 3469, or come in. Suite 3-7, Level 5, Tower 2, 55 Plaza Parade, Maroochydore QLD 4558. One office, no branches.