What Does a Conveyancer Do in Victoria?

If you’ve never bought or sold a home before, you might have heard the term “conveyancer”, but you might not know exactly what they do. 

In short, they handle the legal transfer of property ownership. This includes checking the contract, reviewing the title, managing settlement, and making sure nothing about the sale comes back to bite you later. For anyone purchasing, selling, or transferring a property in Victoria, understanding this role early can save a lot of stress (and money) down the track.

This guide walks through exactly what a conveyancer does at each stage, what they check in the Section 32, where their role ends and a solicitor’s begins, and what it typically costs to engage one in Melbourne.

Quick Answer

• A conveyancer manages the legal and administrative side of a property sale: reviewing contracts, checking the Section 32, handling settlement, and lodging documents with the State Revenue Office and Land Use Victoria.
• What does a conveyancer do when buying a house? They check the property’s legal standing before you’re locked into a contract.
• For sellers, they prepare the Section 32 statement and contract of sale, and manage the settlement handover.
• Conveyancing isn’t legally required in Victoria, but doing it yourself means giving up the professional indemnity insurance and compensation fund protection a licensed conveyancer or solicitor provides.
• Fees usually run a few hundred to just over a thousand dollars in professional costs, plus separate disbursements for searches and the PEXA settlement fee.

What Does a Conveyancer Do?

At its core, a conveyancer manages the legal transfer of property from one owner to another. In Victoria, that process is governed by the Sale of Land Act 1962 and the Transfer of Land Act 1958, and it covers everything from the moment a contract is signed through to the day settlement funds move and the title changes hands.

A conveyancer is licensed specifically for this work. Under Consumer Affairs Victoria’s rules, a conveyancer is someone other than a legal practitioner who’s licensed to carry out conveyancing work and give legal advice about the transfer of title. When you deal with a legal practitioner or conveyancer, you’re protected by their professional indemnity insurance if something goes wrong as a result of their advice, and by statutory compensation funds that cover any money they hold on your behalf.

That protection is a big part of why the regulator recommends using a conveyancer or legal practitioner rather than handling the process yourself if you’re not confident in your own ability. See our full breakdown of conveyancer vs solicitor roles if you’re weighing up which one suits your situation.

So what does a conveyancer do, practically speaking? Depending on whether you’re buying or selling, their day-to-day work includes:

• Reviewing or preparing the contract of sale
• Checking or drafting the Section 32 (Vendor’s Statement)
• Ordering title searches and property certificates
• Calculating and arranging payment of land transfer duty (stamp duty)
• Liaising with your bank or lender on mortgage documentation
• Preparing and lodging the Transfer of Land
• Managing the settlement process through PEXA
• Calculating adjustments for rates, water, and owners corporation fees

What Does a Conveyancer Do When Buying a House?

If you’re purchasing, this is where a conveyancer is most helpful. Here’s roughly how it plays out, in order.

Before You Sign

Ideally, your conveyancer reviews the contract of sale and Section 32 before you sign, not after. This is especially true at auction, where there’s no cooling-off period. For private sales, Victoria gives buyers a three-business-day cooling-off period, but you’re still far better off having the documents checked up front than relying on that as a safety net.

Reviewing the Contract and Section 32

Your conveyancer reads through the contract for anything unusual: special conditions, settlement timeframes, deposit terms, and whether the price includes GST. Alongside this, they scrutinise the Section 32.

Ordering Searches and Running Checks

Beyond what’s disclosed in the Section 32, your conveyancer may order additional searches depending on the property. For example, confirming rates and land tax owing, or checking planning overlays that could affect renovations down the line.

Handling Stamp Duty and Finance

Your conveyancer calculates the land transfer duty payable and lodges the Digital Duties Form with the State Revenue Office. If you’re a first-home buyer, they’ll also check your eligibility for a duty exemption or concession. Our guide to stamp duty exemptions in Victoria covers the current thresholds in more detail. They’ll also liaise with your bank to ensure your loan documents and the settlement date align.

Settlement Day

On settlement, your conveyancer coordinates with the seller’s representative and both banks through PEXA, the national electronic conveyancing platform that Victorian conveyancers use to settle property transactions online. Electronic lodgement has been mandatory for standard Victorian property transfers since 1 August 2019, so funds transfer, duty gets paid, and the Transfer of Land is lodged with Land Use Victoria as part of the same digital process. You don’t need to be there. You’ll just get a call or email once it’s done and the keys are yours.

If you’re buying your first home, it’s worth pairing this with our first home buyer checklist so you know what to have ready before you even make an offer.

What a Conveyancer Checks in the Section 32

Section 32 (officially the Vendor’s Statement) is arguably the most important document in a Victorian property sale, and it’s where most of a conveyancer’s scrutiny is directed. It’s named after section 32 of the Sale of Land Act 1962, and it must be given to the buyer before they sign the contract.

Per Consumer Affairs Victoria, the Section 32 contains information about the property’s title, including mortgages, covenants, easements, zoning, outgoings such as rates, and whether the property is in a bushfire-prone area. Here’s what your conveyancer is specifically checking:

• Title details: Confirming the seller owns the property and is legally entitled to sell it, and that there are no unexpected parties on title
• Easements and covenants: Restrictions on how the land can be used, or rights other parties (like utility companies or neighbours) have over it
• Zoning: Whether the property’s zoning matches what you intend to do with it, particularly relevant if you’re planning to renovate, subdivide, or build
• Outgoings: Rates, land tax, and other charges attached to the property, so nothing outstanding lands on your desk after settlement
• Owners corporation fees: For units and townhouses, current fees, any special levies, and whether the owners corporation has pending disputes or major works planned
• Building permits: Whether any building or renovation work carried out on the property was properly permitted, which matters if you’re inheriting an undisclosed extension or unapproved structure

Because it’s a legal document, the Section 32 must be factually accurate and complete. If the information is incorrect or missing, a buyer may be able to withdraw from the sale or take legal action against the seller. That’s exactly why a thorough review before you sign matters more than almost anything else in the process.

What Does a Conveyancer Do in Victoria When You’re Selling?

The seller’s side of conveyancing looks a little different, and generally starts earlier in the process.

Before your property goes to market, your conveyancer prepares the Section 32, pulling together title searches, zoning certificates, and, if applicable, the owners corporation certificate. This document has to be ready before agents can legally start marketing the property, so it’s usually one of the first calls to make once you’ve decided to sell.

Once you’ve accepted an offer, your conveyancer reviews the signed contract, liaises with the buyer’s representative, and manages settlement from your end, including arranging discharge of any existing mortgage and calculating rate and water adjustments.

One change worth knowing about if you’re selling a higher-value property: as of 1 January 2024, sellers can no longer pass on windfall gains tax to buyers where the liability was assessed before signing, and can’t pass on land tax where the sale price is under the threshold amount, set at $10,700,000 for the year starting 1 January 2026. Your conveyancer will flag if this applies to your sale.

What a Conveyancer Does NOT Do

It’s just as useful to know where a conveyancer’s role stops. A licensed conveyancer in Victoria does not:

• Arrange building or pest inspections. This is arranged separately through a licensed building inspector. What your conveyancer can do is make sure the contract includes a “subject to building and pest inspection” clause, so you have an out if something turns up.
• Provide tax or financial advice. A conveyancer can tell you what duty is payable and flag if you might be eligible for an exemption, but they won’t advise on capital gains tax implications, structuring a purchase through a trust, or your broader financial position. That’s a job for your accountant or financial adviser.
• Handle court disputes. If a conveyancing matter turns into a dispute, conveyancers generally can’t represent you in litigation. That work sits with a solicitor or barrister.

This is really the dividing line between a conveyancer and a solicitor. A conveyancer is licensed for property transfer work specifically, while a solicitor can also give broader legal advice and represent you if things end up in court. Most straightforward residential purchases and sales don’t need a solicitor, but if your matter involves a dispute, a complex trust structure, or overlapping legal issues, that’s when it’s worth stepping up to one.

We’ve laid this out in more detail in our conveyancer vs solicitor comparison.

How Much Does a Conveyancer Cost in Victoria?

Conveyancing costs in Victoria generally break into two parts: professional fees and disbursements.

Professional fees are what you pay your conveyancer or solicitor for their time and expertise. For a standard residential purchase or sale in Melbourne, this typically ranges from $700 to $1,500, though it varies depending on the complexity of the transaction and who you engage.

Disbursements are the separate, pass-through costs your conveyancer pays on your behalf to third parties, such as:

• Title and property searches
• Owners corporation certificates (where relevant)
• Council and water rate certificates
• The PEXA settlement fee for lodging your transaction electronically

As of PEXA’s current Victorian pricing schedule, fees for a single-title transaction range from around $20 for a caveat up to around $54 for a mortgage lodgement, with figures reviewed periodically in line with CPI. Your conveyancer will confirm the exact fee that applies to your transaction as part of their quote.

Always ask for a written quote that separates professional fees from disbursements before you engage anyone, so you know exactly what you’re paying for and can compare quotes properly.

Work With a Professional Conveyancer in Melbourne

Whether you’re buying your first home, selling the family home, or sorting out a property transfer, having someone who explains things clearly makes the whole process far less stressful.

At BT Legal, we handle conveyancing for buyers, sellers, and first home buyers across Melbourne’s northern suburbs, with straightforward fixed-fee pricing and direct access to the person working on your file. If you’re ready to get started, or just want a clear answer about what a conveyancer would do in your situation, get in touch with our Melbourne conveyancer team for an obligation-free chat.

This article is general information about caveats on property in Victoria and doesn’t constitute legal advice. Every property matter is different, so if you’re dealing with a caveat on your own transaction, speak with a conveyancer or solicitor about your specific circumstances.