What is a Section 10.7 certificate and why do I need one?
A Section 10.7 certificate (formerly the 149 certificate) is issued by the local council and shows a property's zoning, planning restrictions, and known risks such as flooding, bushfire or contamination. Every NSW property contract must include one, and it's usually the first document your conveyancer reviews. It only covers council records — not the physical condition of the building.
The Fuller Picture
The Section 10.7 certificate (named after section 10.7 of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act) is split into two parts. Part 1 covers general planning information — zoning, the land use table, and any development standards that apply. Part 2, which most vendors also order, adds information the council holds that isn't strictly required by law but is still useful, such as whether the land is affected by a road widening proposal, a heritage listing, or a coastal erosion policy. Together they give you a snapshot of what council knows about the block, independent of what the vendor or agent tells you.
Where it gets more complicated is that a 10.7 certificate only reflects council's own records. It won't flag things another authority holds, such as a Rural Fire Service bushfire mapping update lodged after the certificate was issued, or a state infrastructure corridor that hasn't yet been notified to council. It also won't tell you about unapproved structures, unregistered easements, or the physical condition of a building — those come from a title search, survey, and building inspection respectively. Buyers sometimes assume a clean 10.7 certificate means a clean property; it only means a clean council record.
Under NSW law, the vendor must attach a current Section 10.7 certificate to the contract of sale before it's signed — if they don't, the buyer can potentially rescind. Certificates are generally treated as current for around three months, and if settlement drags on, your conveyancer may request an updated one. Most NSW councils now issue a combined 10.7(2) and (5) certificate covering both the mandatory and supplementary information in one document.
What This Means for Your Purchase
For a buyer, the 10.7 certificate is a due diligence checkpoint, not a formality to skim past. If it flags something like flood-prone land, a bushfire category, or a heritage overlay, that can affect insurance costs, renovation approval, and future resale — all things worth factoring into your offer before you're locked into a contract.
Timing matters too. If you're buying at auction or signing under a 66W waiver of the cooling-off period, you won't have the usual five business days to absorb what the certificate says — it needs to be read and understood before you bid or sign, not after. If something concerning turns up post-exchange without a cooling-off period, your options to walk away are limited.
Legally, an inaccurate or missing certificate can occasionally support a claim against the vendor or council, but this is a narrow, technical area — it's not a substitute for your own checks. Financially, a certificate that reveals a planning restriction, such as a reduced floor space ratio or an easement for services, can directly affect what you're willing to pay, since it may limit what you can build or add later.
How This Shows Up in the Illawarra
In coastal pockets of the Illawarra — parts of Coledale, Austinmer, and sections of the Shellharbour and Lake Illawarra foreshore — 10.7 certificates commonly carry coastal hazard or flood-related notations that buyers from outside the region aren't always expecting. Escarpment-adjacent suburbs such as Mount Keira, Mount Pleasant, and parts of Bulli and Thirroul often carry bushfire prone land notations due to their proximity to bushland, which can affect building requirements for any future renovation or rebuild.
Older housing stock in suburbs like Wollongong, Berkeley, and Warrawong can also carry heritage conservation area notations or superseded zoning references that are easy to miss without a careful read of the certificate. Because so much of the Illawarra's buyer activity happens via private treaty rather than auction, there's usually time to have a conveyancer review the certificate properly before exchange — it's worth using that window rather than treating it as paperwork to file away.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who pays for the Section 10.7 certificate?
The vendor generally orders and pays for it, since it must be attached to the contract before the property is offered for sale.
Is a 10.7 certificate the same as a building inspection?
No. It only reflects council planning and zoning records — it says nothing about the physical condition of the building, which requires a separate building and pest inspection.
Do first home buyers need to worry about this?
Yes — it's just as relevant on a first purchase, and often more so, since first home buyers are less likely to have seen one before and may not know what the notations mean.
When should I actually read the certificate?
Before you commit — ideally during your due diligence period or before an auction, since once you've exchanged without a cooling-off period, your ability to act on what it says is limited.
Can I negotiate the price based on what's in the certificate?
Often, yes. A notation like a bushfire category or flood classification is a legitimate reason to factor extra cost — insurance, building requirements — into your offer.
Does a buyers agent check this for me?
A buyers agent will usually flag anything unusual in the certificate and loop in your conveyancer, though the formal legal review still sits with your solicitor or conveyancer.
If you'd like a second set of eyes on a property's planning certificate before you commit, we're happy to talk it through. Reach out anytime to discuss what it means for your specific purchase.
