Areas we serve / Mornington Peninsula / Rye and Sorrento
Lawyers and solicitors for Rye and Sorrento
Holiday homes, property, heritage and estates for Rye, Blairgowrie and Sorrento clients, from our Frankston office or by video.
What we do for Rye and Sorrento clients
Choose what you need help with. Each one opens the detail further down this page.
Legal services for Rye and Sorrento clients
Sorrento was the site of the first British settlement in what is now Victoria, in 1803, and its limestone buildings along Ocean Beach Road now sit in a heritage precinct. Rye grew from lime burning into a holiday town with a bay beach and an ocean beach. Many homes in both towns are holiday houses.
We act for owners of holiday homes and permanent homes, for buyers and sellers, for families who share a beach house, and for executors of estates with property on the southern Peninsula. Radek Dajer, our principal solicitor, acts personally on each matter, in English or in Polish. Much of the work can be done by phone, video and email.
Local note
Short stay rentals on the Peninsula must be registered with the Shire every year, and a contact person must respond to neighbours’ complaints within two hours, day or night.
Owning a holiday home
What to check with a holiday house
A holiday house on the southern Peninsula comes with its own taxes, registrations and family questions. Check these points whether you use it yourself, rent it out or share it.
Tap or point to the gold markers on the drawing.
Holiday homes, property and estates in Rye and Sorrento
Choose a topic to see what it involves and how we help.
Taxes, registrations and agreements for holiday houses, whether you use them yourself, rent them out or share them.
- Short stay levy: since 1 January 2025 a 7.5% levy applies to bookings of less than 28 days, unless the property is someone’s principal place of residence. The booking platform collects it, or the owner for direct bookings.
- Shire registration: short stay rentals must be registered each year under the Shire’s Short Stay Rental Accommodation Local Law 2022, with a contact person and the registration number in your advertising.
- Empty homes: vacant residential land tax applies to homes left empty for more than six months of a year. A holiday home used by the owner for at least four weeks may be exempt, but the conditions need checking every year.
- Land tax: a holiday home is not your principal place of residence, so it usually counts towards your land tax.
Contract and section 32 review, auctions and private sales, and settlement for holiday and permanent homes.
- Before you sign: we check the contract, the section 32 statement and the planning controls, including any heritage, landslide or other overlay.
- Cooling-off: for many private sales of residential property, you have 3 clear business days after signing to end the contract. There is none at a publicly advertised auction.
- Land tax at settlement: for most sales, a seller can no longer pass land tax on to the buyer.
Permits and checks for properties in the Sorrento Historic Precinct and other heritage places.
- Permits: under the Heritage Overlay, a planning permit is needed to demolish, build, or externally alter a building, and in some heritage places to paint an unpainted surface or remove a tree.
- Checking a property: the planning property report shows whether an overlay applies, and the Shire offers a free pre-application meeting for heritage advice.
- Buying: the section 32 statement must disclose the planning controls, including a Heritage Overlay. We explain what it means for your plans before you sign.
Probate and estate administration where the estate includes a holiday house.
- Is a grant needed? A holiday house in the deceased’s sole name usually needs a grant of probate before it can be sold or transferred. Property owned as joint tenants passes to the surviving owner.
- Family provision claims: must generally be filed within 6 months after the grant of probate or letters of administration.
- Planning ahead: if you want the family beach house kept or sold after you die, say so clearly in your will, to reduce the risk of a dispute.
Owners who live elsewhere
Many Rye and Sorrento owners live in Melbourne or further away. Much of the work can be done by email, phone and video, so you may only need to come in to sign documents.
Selling a holiday home
Selling in Rye or Sorrento, step by step
What happens from listing to settlement, including the points that come up with holiday houses.
01
Prepare the contract
We prepare the contract of sale and the section 32 statement, including the planning controls and any heritage overlay, so the campaign can start on time.
02
Tax clearance
Most sellers now need an Australian Taxation Office clearance certificate by settlement, whatever the price. Apply early, because it can take some weeks to issue.
03
Short stay bookings
If the house is listed for short stays, plan when to stop taking bookings, and deal with any bookings that fall after settlement before you sign.
04
Adjustments
Council rates and water charges are apportioned between buyer and seller. For most sales, a seller can no longer pass land tax on to the buyer.
05
Settlement
Settlement happens electronically through a platform such as PEXA, so you do not need to attend. Once it is confirmed, the agent can release the keys.
How we work
One lawyer, start to finish
Radek Dajer acts on your matter personally, from the first meeting to the final document, settlement or hearing.
Costs in writing
Before any work starts, we tell you in writing how we will charge and give you an estimate, and we update it if things change.
English or Polish
Meetings, advice and explanations of documents in English or in Polish.
Rye and Sorrento clients
About 40 to 45 minutes by car, or meet us by phone or video wherever you live.
Visit us from Rye and Sorrento
435 Nepean Highway, Frankston VIC 3199
Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm, by appointment
From Rye and Sorrento
About 40 to 45 minutes by car via the Mornington Peninsula Freeway and Peninsula Link.
By bus
Route 788 runs from Portsea through Sorrento and Rye to Frankston station, a short walk from our office.
Parking
Wilson Parking at 453 Nepean Highway, street parking on the Nepean Highway, and the car parks at McDonald’s across the road and at Dan Murphy’s.
Common questions
Can’t see your question? Call 1800 776 529 or send us a message.
If you rent it out for short stays, yes. The Shire’s Short Stay Rental Accommodation Local Law 2022 requires yearly registration, a contact person who responds to neighbours’ complaints within two hours, and the registration number in your advertising. The state short stay levy is separate.
Usually. A holiday home is not your principal place of residence, so it usually counts towards your land tax. Vacant residential land tax can also apply if the home is empty for more than six months of a year, unless an exemption applies.
Often, but you will usually need a planning permit for demolition, external changes, and in some places painting or tree works, under the Heritage Overlay. The Shire offers a free pre-application meeting for heritage advice.
Start with how the title is held and anything you agreed. A written co-ownership agreement covering costs, use and a buy-out avoids most disputes. If co-owners cannot agree, VCAT can make orders about co-owned land, including an order for its sale, under the Property Law Act 1958 (Vic).
Yes. Much of the work can be done by email, phone and video, and we can arrange signing when you are next on the Peninsula or near our Frankston office.
Yes. Radek Dajer speaks Polish and can take your instructions and explain your documents in Polish. See our Polish-language services.
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Talk to us about your Rye and Sorrento matter
Tell us briefly what has happened or what you are planning. We will explain your options, the next steps and how we charge. Call 1800 776 529 or send us a message, Monday to Friday, 9:00am to 6:00pm.
