As water levels rise so too does the pressure to stop building houses on flood plains

Marcus Claxton, who is building a house on a block of land in the Redbank estate in North Richmond, agrees. He says it should be mandatory for real estate listings to mention the flooding risk.

Chief executive of the real estate institute of NSW, Tim McKibbin, says it is not mandatory to include flood-risk warnings on listings but agents must disclose if a property has been flooded in the past five years. There is no obligation to disclose if a property is on a flood plain.

The geologist says authorities should rethink planning decisions based on the one-in-100-year flood line and the advice given to people buying land or homes in the area.