Subdivisions & developments.

Subdivision is both a planning process and a legal one. You need a planning permit, a surveyor's plan of subdivision, servicing arrangements with the relevant authorities, and finally registration at Land Use Victoria. Our role is the legal spine that runs through it: the owners corporation, easements, section 173 agreements with council, and the certification and registration steps that turn a permit into a registered plan.

Where the subdivision creates common property, such as a shared driveway, shared wall or shared services, an owners corporation is usually required, and its rules decide how costs are shared and disputes are handled. Those rules are prepared to fit the actual development rather than defaulting to a generic set. Section 173 agreements, which bind the land and run with title, are reviewed and negotiated with council before registration, since their terms often outlast the development itself.

Selling lots before the plan registers is common, particularly to fund a development, but it requires contracts drafted for an unregistered lot with the sunset date, plan disclosure and deposit arrangements handled correctly. Those contracts and vendor statements are prepared, then each lot settles progressively as the project completes.

Rezoning can trigger windfall gains tax on the uplift in value under the Windfall Gains Tax Act 2021. It is payable by the owner, is not adjusted between the parties, and any unpaid amount is a charge on the land, so it has to be built into a development's numbers from the start.

Land in a designated growth area can also carry a Growth Areas Infrastructure Contribution, which attaches to the title and is triggered by certain dealings with the land.

Legal work is rarely the bottleneck on a subdivision: servicing and authority sign-offs are. Water, power and drainage requirements imposed by the permit are the common delay. The legal steps are kept ready so registration follows quickly once the authorities release their consents.