Buying process · Queensland
Settlement on a completed new home in Queensland.
Buying a house that is already built is a property purchase, not a building project. There is one contract of sale, a normal settlement period, and a finished home you can walk through before you commit. Here is the sequence, step by step, and what happens after you get the keys.
General information only, not financial, tax or legal advice. Last updated: July 2026.
How long does settlement take on a finished home?
Settlement on a completed new home in Queensland runs on a normal property timeline, usually 30 to 60 days. You sign one contract of sale, your lender values a house the valuer can walk through, building and pest is done on a standing home, you complete a pre-settlement inspection, then you settle and take handover.
That timeline is the same one used for any established house purchase in Queensland, because the transaction is the same shape: a single contract of sale on a finished property, settled through your solicitor. The length is a term of the contract, so 30, 45 or 60 days are all common, and the date is agreed before you sign.
A completed home is a different purchase from a build contract. There is no separate land contract, no building contract running alongside it, no progress payments and no construction period to wait out. Pearson Bros Homes finishes each house first and then lists it, so what you are buying is a house you can stand in, measured against a price that is fixed in the contract.
What happens between signing and handover?
Signing starts a short run of dated milestones written into the contract: the finance date, the building and pest date, then settlement. Each one has a deadline you and your solicitor work to. Because the house is already built, every check is done on the real thing rather than on plans.
The steps below run in order, and every date is set in the contract of sale before you sign it:
- Contract date, day zero. You sign one contract of sale at a fixed price and pay the deposit into a trust account. Your solicitor takes over from here. A statutory cooling-off period applies to most residential contracts in Queensland, and your solicitor will confirm exactly how it applies to yours.
- Finance date. Your lender assesses the loan and orders a valuation. This is the point where a finished home helps most: the valuer can walk through the actual house, so the valuation is on a completed property rather than on a proposed build.
- Building and pest date. Your inspector attends a standing home and reports on the roof space, subfloor, wet areas, external walls and grounds as they exist. You get a report on the house you are buying, not on a stage of construction.
- Contract goes unconditional. Once the finance and building and pest dates pass and you are satisfied, the contract is unconditional and both sides are locked in to the settlement date.
- Pre-settlement inspection. Shortly before settlement you walk the home again to confirm it is in the same condition as when you signed and that everything included in the contract is there and working.
- Settlement date, 30 to 60 days from the contract date. Your solicitor and your lender exchange funds, the transfer is lodged and the title moves into your name. Nothing here depends on a build program.
- Handover. You collect the keys and the documentation and move in or hand the property to your property manager to lease. The 12 month maintenance period starts from here.
- After handover. Structural cover continues for 7 years under the QBCC Home Warranty Scheme.
Can you inspect before settlement?
Yes, and more than once. You can inspect before you sign, again during the building and pest period, and again at the pre-settlement inspection shortly before the settlement date. Because the home is finished, you are inspecting real paint, real flooring, real fixtures, real appliances and finished landscaping.
This is the practical difference between buying a completed house and committing to one that has not been built yet. You can check the light in the living areas at the time of day you will actually use them, look at the street, the neighbours and the estate as it currently stands, and hand your building and pest inspector a house rather than a plan.
It also means the rental picture is real. On an investment purchase the property can be appraised on its finished condition and leased soon after settlement, rather than sitting as an unfinished asset while a build runs. If you are weighing suburbs in the western corridor, our read on whether Redbank Plains stacks up as an investment in 2026 works through the current numbers, and the same corridor movement shows up in Ipswich and Moreton Bay outpacing Brisbane on home prices.
What cover do you have after you move in?
Two layers. A 12 month maintenance period after handover covers minor defects that show up in normal use, and structural cover runs for 7 years under the QBCC Home Warranty Scheme. The home is also built to the NCC 7 Star energy standard, so running costs start lower than an older house.
Every Pearson Bros home is built by FRD Homes, a related builder under common family ownership, QBCC licence 15046435, ABN 19 617 452 785. In the first 12 months you report anything that needs attention and it is dealt with as part of the maintenance period. Structural items are covered for 7 years under the statutory scheme, which sits behind the home regardless of the maintenance period.
Because the house is new, the appliances, roof, wiring, plumbing and finishes all start their life with you. That is the part of a new home that a settlement timeline does not show: the maintenance you would normally budget for on an older house is not sitting in front of you.
Frequently asked questions
How long does settlement take on a completed new home in Queensland?
Usually about 30 to 60 days from the contract date, the same as buying any established house. The home is already finished, so there is no build program to wait out and no progress payments. The settlement date is a term of the contract of sale, and your solicitor and lender work to it.
Do you still get building and pest on a brand new home?
Yes, and it is easier than on a home that is still being built. The house is standing, so your inspector can walk the roof space, the subfloor, the wet areas and the external walls and report on what is actually there rather than on a plan or a stage of construction.
Can you inspect the home before settlement?
Yes. Buyers of a completed home can inspect before they sign, again during the building and pest period, and once more at the pre-settlement inspection shortly before the settlement date. You are checking a finished house with finished fixtures, appliances, paint, flooring and landscaping in place.
What cover do you have after you move in?
Every Pearson Bros home is built by FRD Homes, a related builder under common family ownership, QBCC licence 15046435. There is a 12 month post-handover maintenance period for minor defects, and structural cover runs for 7 years under the QBCC Home Warranty Scheme. Homes are built to the NCC 7 Star energy standard.
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Finished, move-in-ready houses sold under a single contract of sale at a fixed price, with a rental appraisal so you know the yield before you buy.
View available propertiesGeneral information only. Contract dates, cooling-off rights and settlement periods depend on the contract you sign and on your circumstances. Nothing here is financial, tax or legal advice. Obtain advice from your solicitor, accountant or a licensed specialist before entering into a contract of sale.