If an agent sends a draft contract to your solicitor before you have decided the price, deposit timing, settlement period, conditions, chattels and disclosure concerns you want reviewed, the process has started in the wrong order.
That does not mean the agent has done anything improper. Draft contracts are common in Queensland property transactions and can be useful once a buyer is ready to turn an offer into written terms. The problem is that an early draft can start carrying assumptions before the buyer has made those assumptions their own. A settlement date appears, a deposit deadline is inserted, the inclusions are left blank or incomplete, the disclosure documents sit unread in the same email chain, and the solicitor is suddenly looking at a contract the buyer has not properly instructed.
The buyer’s job at that point is to slow the sequence without killing the deal. Ask for the draft and disclosure material first. Make clear that no terms are agreed. Check the commercial deal yourself. Decide what protections you need. Then instruct your solicitor so they review your deal, with your timing, your concerns and your intended conditions, rather than simply reacting to the first version of a contract prepared before the buyer’s position was clear.
The Buyer Usually Sets the Terms Before the Lawyer Reviews Them
The reason timing matters is simple. A solicitor can review the contract in front of them, but the solicitor cannot know the deal the buyer thought they were making unless the buyer explains it. If the draft arrives before the buyer has properly inspected, read the disclosure material, checked finance timing, confirmed the deposit date, reviewed body corporate issues or clarified inclusions, the lawyer may be reviewing a document that looks ordinary while missing the exact things that matter to the buyer.
That is how avoidable problems begin. The contract may say settlement is due in 21 or 30 days, even though the buyer’s lender is likely to need more time for valuation, assessment and final approval. The deposit may be payable sooner than the buyer can safely arrange, especially where funds need to be moved between accounts, trust account details need to be verified, money is coming from overseas or signing occurs after business hours. The contract may say nothing about furniture, equipment, access fobs, curtains, appliances, pool gear or other items the buyer assumed were included because they were discussed during the inspection.
Those are not abstract legal issues. They are the everyday details that decide whether the contract actually reflects the deal. A buyer who lets the first draft set those details may find themselves negotiating backwards from someone else’s version of the transaction.
A Draft Contract Usually Follows a Real Offer
A draft contract is useful when the buyer has formed a real offer and wants that offer put into a document. At that point, the buyer has usually inspected properly, settled on a price, considered finance, thought about deposit timing, checked whether settlement is realistic, identified the conditions they need and decided which inclusions or seller promises should be written into the contract. The draft then gives the seller something concrete to consider and gives the buyer’s solicitor something meaningful to review.
The process becomes messy when the draft arrives before that work has been done. A buyer may feel pressured to respond to the contract rather than decide the terms from scratch. A settlement date can feel like the starting point simply because it has already been typed in. A deposit deadline can feel settled because it appears in a formal document. A missing inclusion can start to feel like a later amendment rather than something that should have been part of the offer from the beginning.
Buyers can handle that cleanly. Ask the agent to send the draft contract and all disclosure material to you first, and say plainly that no terms are agreed while you are reviewing the commercial details. That keeps the transaction cooperative while making clear that the document has not overtaken the decision.
Legal Review Needs Proper Instructions
A solicitor copied into an early email chain may provide useful advice, but the review will be much stronger if the buyer first gives the lawyer the commercial context. The solicitor should know the offer price being considered, the deposit date the buyer can realistically meet, the finance period required, the settlement date that suits lender timing, the chattels discussed at inspection, any repairs or removals promised by the seller, any disclosure items that need attention and any due diligence concerns that could affect whether the buyer proceeds.
This is especially important for body corporate properties and commercial purchases. A buyer may want records reviewed, meeting minutes checked, levies understood, insurance questions answered, defects investigated, by-laws examined or future use considered before becoming locked into the contract. If the solicitor receives only the agent’s draft, without those instructions, the legal review may miss the buyer’s real pressure points.
A better instruction is direct and practical. Tell the solicitor what you believe the deal includes, what timing you need, what conditions you want, what worries you, and what you have been told by the agent or seller. The solicitor can then test whether the draft actually protects the deal you intend to make.
Seller Disclosure Should Be Read Before the Contract Moves Too Far
Queensland’s seller disclosure regime has made the pre-signing stage more important. Buyers generally need to receive key disclosure material before signing, and that material can affect price, timing, conditions and the buyer’s appetite for the property. It should be read before the buyer treats the contract as ready for legal review, because disclosure can raise issues that belong in the contract itself.
An easement may affect how the land can be used. A covenant may limit future plans. A body corporate certificate may raise questions about levies, insurance or scheme management. Planning, title or environmental information may shift the buyer’s view of the property. In a unit, townhouse or commercial lot, the buyer may need to go further than the disclosure statement and inspect body corporate records, including minutes, budgets, insurance records, levy history, defect discussions, disputes, caretaking arrangements and upcoming works.
If the buyer wants the right to review those records and terminate if unsatisfied, that protection needs clear contract wording. Disclosure may reveal the concern, but it will not automatically give the buyer a broad due diligence right, a body corporate records condition or an open-ended right to walk away. Those rights need to be built into the contract before signing.
Cooling Off Should Not Carry the Contract
Some residential buyers take comfort from Queensland’s cooling off period, but it should never carry the burden of a poorly checked contract. The period is short, exclusions apply, it can be waived or shortened, and ending the contract during cooling off can still involve a financial penalty. Commercial buyers may have even less room to move.
Cooling off also does not solve the most common drafting problems. It will not add missing chattels, extend a settlement date that does not suit finance, create a due diligence condition, insert body corporate records wording or turn an inspection conversation into a written obligation. The stronger protection is a contract that has been checked properly before the buyer signs it.
Agent Etiquette and Buyer Control
Whether an early draft is poor etiquette depends on the context. If a buyer has clearly asked for a draft contract to be prepared and sent to their solicitor, there is no issue. That can be efficient and helpful. If the buyer has only made a casual enquiry, has not inspected properly, has not reviewed the seller disclosure material, has not settled the commercial terms or has only mentioned a solicitor in passing, sending the draft directly into the legal chain can feel premature.
The concern is less about blame and more about professional sequencing. A good agent may be trying to keep the transaction moving, especially in a competitive campaign where sellers want certainty and buyers want speed, but buyers should not be made to feel that a contract review has already begun before they have decided what they are asking their solicitor to review. The more sensible approach is for the draft and disclosure material to be sent to the buyer first, unless the buyer has clearly instructed otherwise.
From the buyer’s side, the response should stay measured. A short clarification is enough: no terms have been agreed, the buyer is still reviewing the property and disclosure material, and legal review will be instructed once the buyer has checked the commercial details. That keeps the relationship workable while making clear that the buyer controls the point at which the solicitor becomes actively involved.
Agents can also protect themselves by being precise in the way they describe the document. Calling it a draft, confirming that it is for review only, and asking whether the buyer wants their solicitor copied avoids the impression that the transaction is further advanced than it really is. In a clean process, everyone knows the difference between preparing paperwork and agreeing terms.
What to Do If the Draft Has Already Been Sent Too Early
If the agent has already sent the draft contract to your solicitor before you were ready, the answer is usually to reset the sequence in writing rather than turn the exchange into a dispute. A premature draft does not mean the deal has been agreed, and it does not mean the solicitor has been properly instructed. It simply means the paperwork has moved faster than the buyer’s decision-making, which can be corrected if the buyer is clear about what has and has not happened.
The cleanest response is to reply promptly and politely, making clear that no terms have been agreed and that you are still reviewing the draft contract, seller disclosure material, deposit timing, settlement period, finance position, inclusions and any conditions you may require. That wording matters because it separates a working draft from an agreed offer, and it prevents the email chain from implying that the buyer has already reached the legal review stage.
The buyer should then pause long enough to check the commercial deal before asking the solicitor to review the contract in detail. That means reading the disclosure material, confirming whether the settlement date is realistic, checking whether the deposit can be paid on time, deciding whether finance, building and pest, due diligence or body corporate records wording is needed, and making sure any chattels or seller promises have been identified. Once those matters are clear, the buyer can give the solicitor a proper instruction rather than simply asking them to look over a document that may already contain the wrong assumptions.
A simple email is usually enough. The buyer might write: “Thanks for sending the draft. For clarity, no terms are agreed at this stage and I have not yet instructed legal review. I am reviewing the draft contract, disclosure material, deposit timing, settlement period, conditions and inclusions, and I will provide my solicitor with instructions once those commercial details have been checked.” That keeps the transaction alive while putting the buyer back in control of the order.
The Details That Need to Be Settled First
Deposit timing should be checked before the contract goes anywhere near signing. A buyer who signs after hours, needs to verify bank details, has to move funds between banks, is drawing from a term deposit or is waiting for overseas funds should make sure the deposit clause reflects that reality. A friendly assurance that payment timing should be fine is weaker than a contract term that gives the buyer the time they actually need.
Settlement timing needs the same care. A seller may want a fast settlement and an agent may insert a familiar period because it keeps the deal moving, but the buyer needs a date that fits finance approval, valuation, searches, body corporate review, disclosure questions, building and pest follow-up and practical completion. A short settlement may suit a simple cash purchase. A financed purchase, body corporate property, commercial lot or unusual property may need more time.
Chattels and promises also need to be settled before the draft becomes the working contract. If the buyer expects a dishwasher, curtains, pool cleaner, office furniture, reception counter, access devices, spare remotes, equipment or any other item to remain, it should be listed clearly. If the seller has promised a repair, removal, clean-up or handover item, the contract should record it in words that can be understood later.
Conditions need the closest attention. Finance, building and pest, due diligence, body corporate records review, sale of another property, lease review, planning checks and future use concerns should be raised with the solicitor before signing. The wording should match the actual risk. A buyer who needs broad due diligence should not rely on a narrow standard condition that was never designed to cover every commercial, body corporate, planning, services, equipment or operational issue.
How to Reset the Sequence
A buyer does not need to be confrontational. The simplest response is usually enough: ask the agent to send the draft contract and disclosure material to you first, confirm that no terms are agreed, and say that you will instruct your solicitor once you have reviewed the commercial details. That message keeps the transaction alive while making clear that the buyer has not handed control of the deal to the first draft.
If the solicitor has already been copied, the buyer can still reset the position. A clear response might say that legal review has not yet been instructed, no terms have been agreed, and the buyer is still checking deposit timing, settlement, finance, disclosure, conditions and inclusions. That avoids drama while preserving the correct order.
The buyer should then brief the solicitor properly. Instead of forwarding the draft with a vague request to look it over, explain the deal you believe you are making. Say what price is being considered, what timing is needed, what conditions are required, what chattels or promises were discussed and what parts of the disclosure material need attention.
The Point of the Contract
The contract is where the deal becomes real. It should record the buyer’s price, timing, conditions, inclusions and protections after the buyer has made those decisions. It should not pull the buyer into a transaction before the terms have been properly checked.
That is the real issue with a draft contract arriving too soon. The buyer may still be inspecting, reading disclosure, checking finance, thinking through body corporate risk or deciding whether the property is even right, while the paperwork already suggests that the deal has reached solicitor review stage. The buyer then starts catching up to the draft instead of controlling what goes into it.
A prepared Queensland buyer can move quickly without letting the paperwork take over. The order is straightforward: inspect properly, read the disclosure material, decide the commercial terms, brief the solicitor, then review the draft before signing. When that sequence is kept clean, the draft contract becomes useful and the signature at the end reflects a decision the buyer has actually made.
General information only. This content is not legal, financial or property advice and should not be relied on as a substitute for advice tailored to your circumstances. Buyers should obtain independent legal advice before signing a property contract or agreeing to contract terms.
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