Victoria's New Auction Rules: What Buyers Need to Know
From 16 October 2026, Victorian sellers must disclose their reserve price at least seven days before auction — here is how to use it.
Victorian property buyers are about to gain a significant information advantage at auction. From 16 October 2026, anyone selling a property at auction or through a fixed-date sale in Victoria must publish the seller's reserve price as a single dollar amount at least seven days before the sale.
Property Update reports the change applies to all auctions and fixed-date sales held on or after 16 October — including properties that have already been advertised before that date. If the reserve has not been published in time, the auction or fixed-date sale cannot proceed.
For buyers who have ever spent weeks researching a Melbourne property, paid for building inspections and legal checks, and then discovered at auction that the seller's price expectations were far above what was advertised, this change is significant.
What Exactly Is Changing From October 16
The reserve disclosure rule extends beyond the familiar Saturday morning auction. Consumer Affairs Victoria has confirmed that a boardroom auction is treated as a fixed-date sale under the new rules, and inviting offers by a specified date and time could also bring a sale within the requirement.
If a seller changes their reserve after publishing it — whether up or down — the revised figure must be publicly available for a further seven days before the auction or fixed-date sale can proceed. One thing that does not change: a pre-auction offer can still be made and accepted at any time, without waiting for the seven-day clock.
The new rules also introduce the Property Price Statement, which replaces the existing Statement of Information in Victoria. This document must be prominently displayed in online advertising and will include key details of the property alongside the comparable sales the agent has used in pricing — with specifics such as building type, bedrooms, bathrooms, car parking, internal area and land size included for each comparable. That makes the agent's comparable selections much easier for buyers to assess.
From 1 October 2026, agents will also generally need to publish the sold price of any property sold unconditionally within seven days of the sale, and keep that sold-price record publicly accessible for at least 18 months. That will gradually improve the quality of sales data available for buyers to use when assessing future properties.
One timing detail is worth keeping clear: the separate requirement for sellers to make the Section 32 vendor statement available at least 14 days before an auction or fixed-date sale does not begin until 1 June 2027. Victorian buyers this spring should still request the Section 32 as early as possible in any campaign.
How to Use the Reserve Price Strategically
Property Update cautions against treating the disclosed reserve as an independent valuation. The seller chooses the reserve, and Consumer Affairs Victoria has confirmed that a seller can initially set it above the previously advertised price range. The reserve tells you the seller's nominated price — it does not tell you what the property is worth or what competing buyers will pay.
The right approach is to complete your own valuation before the reserve is published. Review genuinely comparable sales, consider the land, the building's condition, and its position within the suburb. If you are buying as an investment, factor in long-term appeal to tenants and future owner-occupiers, as those buyers ultimately underpin the property's value.
Once the reserve is published, compare it with the number you have already calculated. If the reserve is below your estimate of value, you still have reason to stay interested — though other buyers will have seen the same figure. If it is above your limit, you can walk away before investing further time and cost in the campaign.
The most practically useful thing to do now is start due diligence early. The reserve arrives only seven days before auction, which is too late to arrange a contract review, building inspection and finance pre-approval from scratch. For first-home buyers in particular, having finance pre-approved before the campaign begins means you can act decisively when the right property appears rather than scrambling in the final week.
For investors, the Property Price Statement is worth scrutinising closely. A nearby sale may look persuasive until you notice differences in land size, internal condition or street position. Property Update suggests investors should also look for differences that affect rental demand and the property's long-term scarcity value — factors that will matter more than the reserve price on auction day.
Will This End Underquoting?
The honest answer is: it will make the worst underquoting harder, but not impossible. The reform should eliminate the most obvious cases — where properties are advertised at prices that bear no resemblance to the seller's reserve. The final week of a campaign will be much more transparent.
However, the reserve is only disclosed seven days before the auction. Pricing earlier in the campaign, when the bulk of buyer enquiry is generated, will still require independent scrutiny. And sellers who are uncomfortable publishing a reserve may choose a different sales method that falls outside the requirement.
For buyers in Victoria this spring, the practical takeaway is clear. Use the extra transparency to allocate your time and inspection costs more wisely. Before committing to due diligence on any property, check the reserve against your own assessment of value and set your limit before bidding begins. Those who also take time to compare available home loans now — before a potential RBA rate rise on 29 September tightens their borrowing capacity — will be best positioned when the right property comes up. Use our borrowing power calculator to check where you stand today.