Social Security Act 1991

In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears:

An agreement is a sale leaseback agreement, in relation to a person, if:

under the agreement the person agrees to sell his or her principal home; and

the residence that is the person’s principal home is a private residence; and

under the agreement the person retains a right to accommodation in the residence; and

under the agreement the buyer is to pay an amount when the person vacates the residence or when the person dies.

An agreement is also a sale leaseback agreement if the Secretary is satisfied that the agreement is substantially similar in its effect to an agreement referred to in subsection (2).

The initial payment amount, in relation to a sale leaseback agreement, is the amount that the Secretary determines to be the initial amount that the buyer is to pay under the sale leaseback agreement.

In making the determination the Secretary is to have regard to the following:

the consideration to be provided by the parties to the sale leaseback agreement;

when that consideration is to be provided;

the payments that are to be made under the sale leaseback agreement;

when those payments are to be made;

any other relevant matters.

The deferred payment amount, in relation to a sale leaseback agreement, is the total amount to be paid by the buyer under the sale leaseback agreement less the initial payment amount.

If the Secretary considers that, for any special reason in a particular case, the deferred payment amount should be another amount, the deferred payment amount is that other amount.

Sections 1123 to 1128 (disposal of assets) may be relevant to working out the deferred payment amount.

Without limiting subsection (7), the Secretary may consider that the deferred payment amount should be another amount if:

the parties to the sale leaseback agreement are not at arm’s length; or

the parties to the sale leaseback agreement have undervalued the sale leaseback home so as to reduce the total amount to be paid by the buyer under the agreement.

A residence is a sale leaseback home if the residence is subject to a sale leaseback agreement.

A person is a sale leaseback resident if:

the person’s principal home is subject to a sale leaseback agreement; and

the person is a party to the sale leaseback agreement.

If a person is a member of a couple, the person is a sale leaseback resident if:

the person lives in the sale leaseback home; and

the person’s partner is a sale leaseback resident.

Subsection (11) will only be used if a person is not a sale leaseback resident under subsection (10).