Tag 2 of 6 · The agent’s number
How agents must estimate a price
In NSW, Victoria and Queensland an agent’s price has to rest on evidence. NSW asks for a reasonable estimated selling price in the agency agreement, backed by evidence; Victoria asks for one that takes into account the sale prices of the three most comparable properties; and Queensland asks for a comparative market analysis whenever an agent suggests an asking price.
The detail differs in each state, and two of the three are changing their laws now. This page reads each rule from that state’s own regulator and says so beside it.
General information, not legal advice. The rules vary by state and are changing. Check NSW Fair Trading, Consumer Affairs Victoria or Queensland’s Office of Fair Trading for the current version.
Why the number is written down
In Victoria, Consumer Affairs says the agent’s estimated selling price “will form the basis of information provided for potential buyers”.
None of this turns the estimate into a valuation. Queensland’s valuation regulator describes an agent’s estimate as a broad estimate for information, and says it cannot be relied on as a basis for a financial decision, legal or statutory requirement. Appraisal or valuation? sets the two side by side.
| Question | NSW | Victoria | Queensland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where the number is written | In the agency agreement, as the estimated selling price. | In the agent’s sales authority, as the estimated selling price. | In a comparative market analysis (CMA), given when the agent suggests an asking price, and when the seller wants advice on a reserve for an auction. |
| What it must rest on | It must be reasonable and backed by evidence, and should be based on factors such as recent comparable sales. | It must be reasonable and must take into account the sale prices of the three properties most comparable to the seller’s. | At least 3 properties of similar standard or condition, sold within 5km in the last 6 months. If the agent cannot find 3, they must give their market advice in writing and justify how they reached it. |
| How it may be expressed | A single figure, or a range whose highest price is no more than 10% above the lowest. | A single price or a range of up to 10%. Advertised prices may not use words or symbols such as “from”, “offers above” or “+”. | The pages this guide read set no format. At an auction, copies of the CMA may go to bidders only if the seller agrees in writing. |
| What happens when it changes | The agent must tell the seller in writing, amend the agency agreement and take all reasonable steps to update or retract marketing that no longer matches. | If it is no longer reasonable, the agent must tell the seller in writing and update the sales authority, and an advertised price based on it must be updated too. | Not covered on the Queensland pages this guide read. |
| Can the seller keep it quiet? | Yes, until the later NSW changes start. The seller can tell the agent not to disclose it, and the agent then gives no price information. Under those changes, “Agents will need to include a selling price or price range in advertisements”. | Not from the Property Price Statement, which every residential property advertised by an estate agent must have, with a selling price or a range of up to 10%. | At an auction the auctioneer must not say whether a reserve has been set, or what it is. |
Victoria’s Property Price Statement
Victoria puts the agent’s working in front of buyers. Its Property Price Statement must include a selling price or range of up to 10%, the key features of the property, details of the 3 most comparable sales, the median price for the suburb, “the seller’s reserve price, at least 7 days out from an auction or fixed-date sale” and, “within 7 days of the sale going unconditional, the property’s sale price”. If only 1 or 2 comparable properties can be found, the agent must explain why 3 could not be. Consumer Affairs lists the key features: the type of building, the numbers of bedrooms, bathrooms and car spaces, the internal floor space and the land size.
A buyer can find the statement at the open for inspection, beside the price in online advertising, or by asking the agent, who must provide it within 2 business days. Consumer Affairs also says buyers can ask an agent to explain how they developed any price information, and whether it has changed.
What is changing, and when
- 29 June 2026 · NSWNew disciplinary powers for NSW Fair Trading began, including the power to “require a licensee in charge or an independent valuer to verify an agent’s estimated selling price”.
- 1 October 2026 · VictoriaThe Property Price Statement replaced the Statement of Information, for auctions and fixed-date sales on and from 16 October 2026. Where a sale becomes unconditional on or after 1 October 2026, the sold price must be added to it.
- 16 October 2026 · VictoriaFor auctions and fixed-date sales from this date, the seller’s reserve price must be published at least 7 days before, as a single dollar amount; an auction on 16 October needed it disclosed by 9 October.
- Currently expected to be towards the end of 2026 · NSWAgents must consider the sold prices of comparable properties under prescribed requirements, keep records of how they set an estimate, and prepare a Statement of Information. “Agents will need to include a selling price or price range in advertisements.”
- 1 June 2027 · VictoriaThe section 32 vendor statement must be available earlier in the campaign.
- 1 December 2027 · VictoriaUnless granted an exemption, agents must report sold price information to the Director of Consumer Affairs Victoria.
A sale above the guide
A final price above the advertised one is not, on its own, proof that something went wrong. Consumer Affairs Victoria says this does not always mean underquoting took place, because buyers competing against each other can push the price up.
If a Victorian buyer believes underquoting did happen, Consumer Affairs asks for the property address, the agent’s details, screenshots of the advertisement, the Property Price Statement, any written statements about the property and an explanation of the problem. It says it does not respond to every report but keeps them for its compliance and enforcement work, and that its tools against agents who underquote include warning letters, enforceable undertakings, injunctions and prosecutions.
In NSW, Fair Trading’s underquoting guidance sets out what agents must do. In Queensland, the page on appointing an agent gives a seller three steps for a dispute with their own agent, ending with a formal complaint to the Office of Fair Trading.