Buying Property with Family or Friends in QLD: A 2026 Guide

Buying property with a family member or friend is one of the more practical ways to get into the Queensland market, and it happens more often than people realise. Two siblings buy a home together. Parents and an adult child pool resources for a first purchase. Close friends buy an investment property and split the costs. The arrangement makes sense financially, but it raises legal questions that are worth settling before anyone signs a contract.

The most important of those questions is how the property is held. Queensland law offers two ways for co-owners to hold title, and the difference between them has real consequences for what happens if one owner dies, wants to sell, or cannot meet their share of the mortgage, according to Titles Queensland. Getting that choice right from the start is simpler than undoing it later.

Brookwater Legal helps clients across Greater Springfield and Ipswich with buying property with family or friends, from reviewing the contract to advising on how title should be held and what the duty and grant rules mean for each buyer.

Here is how the co-buying process generally works in Queensland, and what to think through before contracts are exchanged.

This article is general information only and is not legal advice. Every situation is different, and you should speak with a solicitor about your own circumstances.

How can co-owners hold property in Queensland?

Co-owners in Queensland hold title either as joint tenants or as tenants in common, and the distinction matters, according to Titles Queensland's Land Title Practice Manual.

Joint tenants hold equal shares with a right of survivorship: if one owner dies, their interest passes automatically to the surviving owner or owners, regardless of what their will says. Tenants in common each hold a distinct, separately owned share, which can be equal or unequal, and that share passes under their will or the intestacy rules on death. The shares are fractions, and they must be stated when the transfer is lodged.

The choice between the two has flow-on effects for estate planning, for what happens if the relationship breaks down, and for stamp duty and land tax. A co-buyer can sever a joint tenancy unilaterally under Queensland's Land Title Act by transferring their proportionate share to themselves, after giving or attempting to give the other joint tenant a copy. All owners can also sever by mutual agreement. Either way, once severed, the former joint tenants become tenants in common. The Queensland Revenue Office notes that changing from joint tenants to tenants in common, where each owner's share value does not change, may attract no transfer duty.

What are the stamp duty and grant rules for co-buyers in Queensland?

Transfer duty, also known as stamp duty, applies to the purchase of property in Queensland. The Queensland Revenue Office makes clear that only one transfer duty concession can be claimed per transaction, so a group of buyers is not entitled to stack concessions.

Where co-buyers have different circumstances, for example one qualifies as a first home buyer and the other does not, the first home buyer may claim on their own interest or share, even if the others do not qualify, according to the Queensland Revenue Office.

For a contract entered into on or after 9 June 2024, the first home concession applies to established homes valued under $800,000, and reduces to nil once the home reaches that threshold, according to the Queensland Revenue Office. For new homes, the first home (new home) concession, available for contracts dated 1 May 2025 or later, has no value cap. Importantly, from 1 August 2026, buyers claiming any home, first home or first home vacant land concession must be Australian citizens, permanent residents or specified foreign retirees, per the Queensland Revenue Office.

The $30,000 first home owner grant is also available only for new homes, not established ones, and only for properties valued under $750,000 including land, according to the Queensland Revenue Office. A buyer who qualifies can claim the grant even where their co-buyer does not.

• › First home concession: applies to established homes under $800,000 for eligible buyers, according to the Queensland Revenue Office.
• › New home concession: no value cap for contracts from 1 May 2025, according to the Queensland Revenue Office.
• › First home owner grant:$30,000 for new homes under $750,000, not available for established homes, according to the Queensland Revenue Office.
• › Citizenship rule: from 1 August 2026, concession claimants must be Australian citizens, permanent residents or specified foreign retirees, per the Queensland Revenue Office.
• › One concession only: only one transfer duty concession can be claimed per transaction, according to the Queensland Revenue Office.

What does the mortgage mean for each co-buyer?

Each co-borrower on a home loan is fully responsible for the entire loan, not just their share of it, according to Moneysmart, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's consumer site. If one co-buyer cannot meet repayments, the lender may require the other to cover the full amount. That responsibility does not automatically change because the co-owners have a private agreement between themselves about who pays what.

If a parent or other person goes guarantor on the loan rather than co-buying, Moneysmart notes that a guarantor also agrees to repay the full loan if the borrower cannot, and the lender may repossess any asset used as security, including the guarantor's own home.

A joint bank account linked to the loan also carries shared liability. Moneysmart explains that joint account holders share responsibility for any debts connected to the account, and that a problem with one holder can affect the other's credit report.

When does a co-owner want out?

At some point, one co-owner may want to sell their interest while another does not. That situation is more common than co-buyers anticipate when they start out, and it is where the absence of a clear agreement between co-owners is felt most sharply.

Under Queensland's Property Law Act, a co-owner may apply to the court for the sale of the property and division of the proceeds, the physical division of the property, or both. The court may make any order the case requires to ensure a just and fair sale or division. This is a legal process rather than a simple commercial transaction, and it can be avoided where co-owners have thought through exit arrangements in advance.

The holder of a distinct share as tenant in common can also sell, gift or leave that share by will without the other co-owner's consent, which is another reason why how the property is held matters from the start.

How does buying with others generally work in Queensland?

The process follows the standard Queensland conveyancing steps, with a few additional points to work through before contracts are signed. Our conveyancing team advises on these at the outset so that each buyer understands their position before they are committed.

Step 1: Talk to us

Get in touch and we will explain how the process generally works, what to consider when buying with others, and what the duty and grant rules mean for your group of buyers.

Step 2: Review the contract and settle how title is held

We review the contract before signing and advise on how each buyer's interest should be recorded on the title. Each buyer's share, whether equal or not, is stated in the transfer as a fraction. The transfer lodged with Titles Queensland must record the tenancy type, otherwise the Registrar treats co-owners as tenants in common.

Step 3: Work through duty, grants and the AML/CTF verification

We assess each buyer's duty and grant position, including who qualifies for a concession and whether the new citizenship rule applies. From 1 July 2026, AUSTRAC's anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing requirements apply to legal practices, including identity verification for each buyer before we begin acting.

Step 4: Settle and register

Settlement in Queensland typically occurs electronically through an approved Electronic Lodgment Network operator, PEXA or Sympli, per Titles Queensland. Once settlement completes, Titles Queensland registers the transfer and the new ownership details appear on the title.

Get in touch Need help with buying with family or friends? We're an experienced team who keep you well informed at every stage of the process. Get in touch to discuss your needs. Make an Appointment Call (07) 3437 8555

What do co-buyers most commonly overlook in Queensland?

The practical experience of co-buying often surfaces issues that buyers did not anticipate at the outset. Two come up consistently in Queensland conveyancing.

The first is the assumption that an informal agreement between co-buyers is enough. It is not a registered document and does not bind a future owner, a lender or a court in the same way a formal arrangement does. What happens if one buyer wants to renovate and the other does not, or one cannot pay their share of rates and maintenance, is left entirely to goodwill.

The second is land tax. Queensland's land tax is assessed on the total taxable value of each owner's freehold land across all their Queensland properties at midnight on 30 June each year, according to the Queensland Revenue Office. For an individual, liability starts at a total taxable value of $600,000. Because co-owners are assessed on their own share, a co-ownership arrangement can affect each buyer's land tax position differently, particularly where one buyer already owns other Queensland property.

When does buying together not work as expected in Queensland?

Co-buying works well where the buyers have aligned expectations, similar financial positions and a shared view of the exit. It is more likely to create difficulty where those things are absent.

Where co-buyers have very different financial positions, lenders generally assess each borrower on the shared loan, meaning one buyer's credit history or income affects the whole application. A change in one buyer's circumstances after settlement, such as a job loss or a change in their own housing needs, can put the arrangement under pressure quickly.

A foreign person buying with an Australian co-buyer will also trigger the additional foreign acquirer duty on that person's interest, according to the Queensland Revenue Office. The duty applies to the foreign buyer's share only, not the whole purchase price, but it adds a cost the buyers need to account for in their planning.

Frequently Asked Questions

Your Next Steps

Buying property with family or friends in Queensland is a practical arrangement that works well when the key decisions, how the title is held, what each buyer's duty position is, and what happens if circumstances change, are thought through before contracts are signed. For buyers across Greater Springfield, getting those foundations right from the start is far simpler than addressing them under pressure later.

If buying with family or friends is on your mind, the next step is a straightforward one. Get in touch with the Brookwater Legal team or call (07) 3437 8555, and we'll talk you through how the process generally works.

By the Brookwater Legal Team Brookwater Legal is owned and run by Jade Kickbusch who has worked in the legal industry since 2009 and was admitted as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of Queensland in 2023, holding a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Southern Queensland. Jade leads the firm's conveyancing and property division and its wills and estates division, and oversees a team acting for clients across Greater Springfield and Ipswich in property, family law, estates and business matters. Meet the team → Make an Appointment →

Brookwater Legal · This article contains general information only and does not constitute legal advice. It does not take into account your individual circumstances. You should obtain legal advice about your own situation before acting on anything in this article. Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.