Buying a caravan park in NSW? Crown land manager limits, the Crown park levy, occupant acts, flood checks and transfer duty, and how lenders read each.
Accommodation Finance Hub
Caravan Parks · Crown Land · New South Wales
A New South Wales park can read like a Queensland one on a listing and still be a different purchase, because a Crown land manager, two state acts and a flood map sit between the price and the loan. These are the checks buyers miss, in the order they tend to bite.
Quick Answer
Buying a caravan park in New South Wales means four checks a national list only touches: who grants a Crown land tenure, the state acts on long-term and permanent occupants, flood and coastal exposure, and how transfer duty falls. Each one changes the price you should pay and the caravan park finance a lender will offer against the going concern.
Also called: holiday parks, tourist parks, and caravan and camping parks in New South Wales. Same asset; "tourist park" is the listing term on many council parks.
What is different about buying a caravan park in New South Wales?
What is different in New South Wales is four checks a national list only touches: who granted the tenure, which state act covers the people living on the park, what the water does in a bad year, and which parts of the price attract transfer duty. The listing will not show any of them. Sites, cabins, occupancy and trading figures look much the same whether the park is on the Tweed, the Murray or the South Coast.
The first mistake buyers make is treating the purchase as a standard one with a state address. The national caravan park due diligence checklist still applies in full. These are the extra checks that sit on top of it:
- Who grants the tenure? On a Crown reserve, the Crown land manager grants the tenure, and its powers have limits that cap the term you can be given.
- Who lives on the park? Long-term casual occupants and permanent residents sit under two different state acts, with different agreements behind each income stream.
- What does the water do? River flat and coastal parks need a flood map before a price, because insurance and valuation follow the map.
- What attracts duty? Revenue NSW splits a business purchase into dutiable and non-dutiable parts, and the split changes your settlement cash.
The state's parks also come in more shapes than buyers expect. Coastal holiday parks, inland river parks, council-run tourist parks on Crown reserves and freehold parks on private land all trade under the same listing headings. Inland parks with cabins on acreage often sit closer to farm stay and eco-tourism accommodation in how a lender reads them. For the wider lending picture across parks, motels and pubs, start at the Accommodation Finance Hub.
Who can grant a lease on a Crown land park in New South Wales, and for how long?
On a Crown land park, the Crown land manager grants the tenure, and at the time of writing NSW Crown Lands' guidance on leases and licences says a Category 1 manager may grant a lease or licence of up to 10 years, including options, without the Minister's consent, while a Category 2 manager may grant licences of up to 12 months without it. Inside those limits the manager acts on its own authority. A longer term, or anything beyond a short licence from a Category 2 manager, sits in a different approval process that your solicitor should trace.
The same guidance says managers should seek market rent, never below the statutory minimum, and should select operators through a process that is open, transparent and accountable. Where the Crown land manager is a council, it acts under the Local Government Act 1993, so the council's own leasing policies and processes sit on top of the Crown land rules.
The mistake here is reading the term on the listing without asking who granted it and under what power. A park that shows "lease with options" can be a leasehold interest from a manager that cannot extend it without a further approval. Before contract, a buyer should confirm:
- Which manager, and which category? The answer sets the longest term that manager can grant on its own.
- Lease or licence? The instrument changes what you are buying and what a lender can hold.
- How much term is left, with options? Count only options that do not depend on a fresh approval.
- Does a transfer need the manager's consent? If it does, that consent becomes a condition of the contract.
From the underwriter's seat, a short Crown tenure caps the loan before the trading figures are even read, because lenders typically want the loan repaid well inside the remaining term, indicative and varies by lender. The national rules on Crown tenure, including the longer-term ceiling and whether a Crown lease can be security, are covered in the caravan park due diligence guide.
What does the NSW Crown caravan park levy take from a park's income?
On listed Crown caravan parks, the levy takes a share of the park's annual gross income for the Crown Reserves Improvement Fund, along with a share of the rent the Crown land manager receives under leases or licences and of any premium paid when a lease or licence is transferred, at the time of writing. NSW Crown Lands' rule on payment of proceeds from Crown caravan parks (rule CLMR24/01, effective 1 January 2024) directs the Crown land manager of each park in its schedule to pay these amounts, and a higher income rate applies to some listed parks from that date.
The mistake is reading the vendor's net profit without checking whether the levy sits in it, and at which rate. A park whose figures straddle 1 January 2024 can show a stronger year than the one a buyer will actually have. Ask the vendor and your adviser for:
- Whether the park is listed. The rule applies only to parks named in its schedule, and a different trading name does not take a listed park outside it.
- Who pays, and how it reaches you. The rule directs the Crown land manager, so check how your lease or licence passes the cost through to the operator.
- The base of each rate. Gross income, rent and a transfer premium are different bases, and the rule lists what counts as gross income and what does not.
- Before and after figures. Trading years either side of 1 January 2024 need adjusting to compare like with like.
- What your purchase triggers. If a premium is paid on the transfer of the lease or licence, a share of it is payable.
We do not repeat the percentages here, because the base each one applies to, and how it reaches the operator, are questions for the buyer's solicitor and accountant to confirm against the rule. A lender will read maintainable earnings after the levy, so it is better to find it in due diligence than in the credit paper.
What do long-term casual occupants and permanent residents mean for a New South Wales park's income?
They mean two income streams under two different state acts, and a buyer who counts every occupied site as the same kind of income will misread the park. Long-term casual occupants, who keep a van or cabin on site for holidays, sit under the Holiday Parks (Long-term Casual Occupation) Act 2002. Permanent residents, who live on the park as their home, sit under the Residential Land Lease Communities Act 2013.
At the time of writing, the New South Wales Government's holiday parks page says the holiday parks act requires a written agreement with long-term casual occupants, and NSW Fair Trading publishes a standard occupation agreement. A buyer should see every agreement, not a summary of them, and a register that shows which act each occupied site sits under.
The mistake is valuing the park on occupancy alone. Annual site fees from long-term casual occupants and permanent residents can steady the income through the off-season, but each group comes with its own agreement terms, notice rules and expectations about the park's future. A lender will typically read a high share of permanent sites differently from a mostly tourist park, and the reading varies by lender. How site fees can rise for permanent residents, and when a park starts to look like a land lease community, are covered in the guide to buying a caravan park with permanent residents.
Does a New South Wales park need council approval to operate?
A New South Wales caravan park operates under an approval from the council under the Local Government Act 1993, and a buyer should see that approval before contract rather than assume it comes with the keys. The approval and its conditions are what make the sites lawful income, so they belong in due diligence next to the trading figures.
The mistake is counting the sites on the ground rather than the sites on the approval. Parks change over decades: a cabin goes in, an overflow area becomes powered sites, a manager's residence is extended. Before contract, ask the council for:
- The current approval to operate and the conditions attached to it.
- The number and type of sites approved, to match against the site plan and the booking system.
- Any outstanding orders or notices on the park or its buildings.
- What happens to the approval on a change of operator, which your solicitor should confirm.
A valuer will usually count only approved sites, so unapproved income can fall out of the valuation even when it shows in the profit and loss. The national checklist covers park registration in general terms; the council approval is the New South Wales layer on top.
How do flood and coastal exposure change the loan on a New South Wales park?
Flood and coastal exposure change who will insure the park, what the valuer is prepared to put on it and how much a lender will advance, which is why a buyer needs a flood map before a price. Many of the state's parks sit on river flats and foreshores, because that is where tourists want to stay. The Hawkesbury-Nepean and the Northern Rivers both have parks on low ground, and the NSW SES publishes flood information for those regions that a buyer can read before making an offer. The council's flood planning information for the land is the other place to look.
For a lender, the question is not whether a park has ever flooded but whether it can be insured and valued on terms that hold up after settlement. Lenders typically make insurance on acceptable terms a condition of settlement, and the valuation will reflect the exposure on the affected sites. A lower valuation feeds straight into the loan to value ratio, so the deposit you need can rise even when the price does not move. The deals that go wrong on this are rarely the ones where the risk was known; they are the ones where the risk surfaced after settlement instead of before contract, and the buyer had no time left to renegotiate.
Checked before contract
- Council flood planning information for the land
- A quote to insure the park, cabins included
- The valuer's view on low-lying sites
- Closure periods visible in the trading history
- Approved sites matched to the site plan
Found after settlement
- An insurer that will not cover the cabins
- A valuation below the agreed price
- Months of lost trading after an event
- Income from sites the council never approved
- A Crown park levy missing from the figures
None of this is a forecast. It is a reading of where the park sits today and what an insurer and a valuer will say about it now.
How do transfer duty and lender appetite work on a New South Wales park purchase?
Transfer duty falls on the parts of the purchase Revenue NSW treats as dutiable property, and the short version is: goodwill is not dutiable, land and fixtures are, at the time of writing. Revenue NSW's page on business purchases also says statutory licences and stock are not dutiable, interests in land including leases are, and goods are dutiable only when sold with dutiable property and may be disregarded in some cases. Separate agreements that form one arrangement are added together, and the buyer pays.
The mistake is pricing the deal before the split is settled. How the price is allocated across land, the lease, fixtures, goods and goodwill changes the duty, and whether the sale can be treated as a going concern changes the GST position. Both are questions for your accountant before contract, not after.
| Tenure | Who grants or owns it | Duty on the purchase (per Revenue NSW, at the time of writing) | What a lender reads first (indicative) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Freehold going concern | You buy the land and the business from the owner | Land and fixtures are dutiable; goodwill and stock are not; goods depend on the deal | Trading figures, the valuation of land and business together, and flood exposure |
| Leasehold from a private owner | A private landowner grants the lease; you buy the lease and the business | The lease is an interest in land and dutiable; goodwill is not | Remaining term and options, rent, and the landowner's consent to the transfer |
| Crown land park under a Crown land manager | The Crown owns the land; the manager grants a lease or licence within its limits | A lease is an interest in land; whether a licence attracts duty is for your accountant and Revenue NSW | The manager's category, the remaining term and the Crown park levy in the figures |
| Council-managed Crown park | The council manages the reserve as Crown land manager under the Local Government Act 1993 | As for other Crown parks; check the instrument you are taking over | The council's leasing terms, its renewal process and any capital works obligations |
Sources: Revenue NSW, Business purchases, last updated 31 August 2026. NSW Crown Lands, Leases and licences, last updated 22 May 2025. NSW Crown Lands, Crown Land Management Rule CLMR24/01, effective 1 January 2024. Read 23 October 2026.
Lender appetite follows the same order as the table. A freehold park with clean trading figures and moderate flood exposure typically draws the widest choice of lenders and is usually funded as a commercial property loan over the land and business together. Leasehold and Crown parks narrow the field as the remaining term shortens, and the loan is sized to the business rather than the land, varies by lender. The holiday park funding map sets out which kind of lender suits which shape of park, and the Property Lending Hub covers the wider property lending options. If you have a park in view, you can check eligibility before you sign.
A New South Wales caravan park is a national purchase with a state layer on top. The Crown land manager grants the tenure on a Crown park and its powers cap the term. On listed Crown caravan parks, a levy on gross income goes to the Crown Reserves Improvement Fund. Long-term casual occupants and permanent residents sit under different acts. The council approval sets which sites count, the flood map shapes insurance and valuation, and Revenue NSW's rules decide which parts of the price carry duty.
Key takeaway: run the four state checks before you agree a price, because each one changes what a lender will advance against the park.Frequently Asked Questions
Living permanently in a New South Wales caravan park is possible, and for a buyer it matters because permanent residents sit under the Residential Land Lease Communities Act 2013 rather than the holiday parks act. Permanent sites can bring steadier income than tourist sites, but they come with their own agreements and site fee rules. The permanent residents guide explains how those rules work.
A property loan for a caravan park in Sydney or on its fringe is possible, and lenders usually treat it as a commercial property loan over a going concern rather than a residential loan. Freehold parks are typically the easiest to fund, while leasehold and Crown parks depend on the term left. Flood exposure on low-lying river land is often one of the first things a lender reads.
Crown land caravan parks in New South Wales are managed by Crown land managers, which are often councils acting under the Local Government Act 1993. At the time of writing, NSW Crown Lands says a Category 1 manager may grant a lease or licence of up to 10 years, including options, without the Minister's consent. The operator holds a lease or licence from that manager, so the purchase reads more like a leasehold deal than a freehold one.
Transfer duty is not payable on the goodwill of a New South Wales caravan park, at the time of writing, according to Revenue NSW's rules on business purchases. Land, interests in land including leases, and fixtures are dutiable, and goods can become dutiable when sold with them. How the price is split across those parts is a question for your accountant.
Floods affect finance for caravan parks in New South Wales because they change insurance, valuation and the loan a lender will offer. A park on known flood-prone land can still be financed, but lenders typically want insurance in place as a condition of settlement and a valuer's read on the affected sites. A valuation that reflects flood exposure can land below the asking price.
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