Conveyancing Fees - Australia 2018 Average Costs for Buying and Selling

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Conveyancing Fees and Costs
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The Full Guide to Conveyancing Fees and Costs
How much does conveyancing cost?
This is a very difficult question to answer. Your
conveyancing needs are dramatically influenced by
your specific Lot, the different parties involved
in your transaction and your personal goals and
needs. Because of this, its impossible to
provide a precise total conveyancing cost from
the outset. Conveyancers can only provide an
estimated cost based on the good faith
(that nothing unusual happens during your
transaction). Unforeseen events and
risks do happen so exact costs are only
provided close to settlement.
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How is Conveyancing Priced?

• It is a standard practice across Australia to
  provide a quote under these three categories
• Fixed Professional Legal Fee  The Labor,
  Conveyancing Works, Lawyers Time, Conveyancers
  Time.
• Standard Search Fees  Third Party Costs payable
  to Council, Utilities, etc.
• Additional Costs  To pay for services outside a
  Standard conveyance and Standard Search Fees.
• The sum of all of the above determines your final
  conveyancing fee. Your final conveyancing fee
  (determined by the specific work/labor required,
  additional searches and additional costs) is only
  finalized once your File Owner and Lawyer work on
  your file with due diligence

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yancing-fees
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What is due Diligence?
Due diligence will uncover risks or any special
circumstances that can affect your transaction.
This is important as any discovered risks will
determine mitigate actions and work required to
protect your interests and rights. Should the
work fall outside a standard conveyance,
additional costs and searches may be required.
What falls outside of the standard conveyance
is a variable that can affect your final cost.
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What is a Standard Conveyance?
The definition of a standard conveyance differs
from law firm to law firm. It should be defined
in the Appointment Terms and Conditions and
listed in the Scope of Work within the Engagement
Letter. Please ensure that you are satisfied with
the Scope of Work before nominating a
conveyancer. The Think Conveyancing standard
Scope Of Work is as follows
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What is a Fixed Professional Legal
The Fixed Professional Legal Fee is the money
paid for the Conveyancing Service as defined in
the Scope of Work. This fee pays for the Lawyers,
Conveyancers, Support Teams time, rent and
electricity. As for the Legal Fee, as long as the
works required for your property fall within the
definition of a Standard Conveyance, the Legal
Fees will be 100 fixed and not change. We find
most of our clients do not require Additional
Services outside the scope of standard
searches. Additional Services are works
outside of the agreed Scope of Works.
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What are Additional Services Work Outside the
Standard Conveyance?
These are additional services that you may
request. Here are some examples General Power of
Attorney drafting / review Deed of Rescission /
Variation drafting / review Caveat
Lodgment License Agreement drafting / review Land
Contract Review Off-the-Plan property These are
not standard as not everyone requires them.
These services come at an additional cost.
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What are Searches ?
Searches are requests for information from
third parties for Search Certificates. Examples
of this include Title Search (provides Title
particulars, ownership details and encumbrances),
Land Tax Clearance Search (details of any
outstanding payment of Land Tax due to the Office
of State Revenue) and Plan Image (dimensions,
gradient and other physical features of the
Lot). This information is needed by the
Conveyancer to do the Conveyancing Work and Due
Diligence. Searches are third-party costs and are
payable to the authorities. These expenses are
required and mandatory (depending on the local
government authorities) and come at an extra cost
beyond the Fixed Professional Legal Fee. For
example, if you need surgery, you pay a Surgeon
for his labour. As the client, you are also
expected to pay for the general anaesthesia and
rental of specialised equipment (not the
Surgeon). Searches, just like general anaesthesia
and x-ray machines, are necessary expenses that
cannot be avoided.
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Example of a Searches Include
 Title Search Provides title particulars, ownership details and encumbrances on Title.
 Plan Image Provides a map of the location of the Lot, dimensions, gradient and other physical features of the Lot.
 Land Tax Clearance Provides details of any outstanding payment of land tax due to the Office of State Revenue.
 Council Rates Provides details of the rates payable for the current billing cycle.
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Does the State affected the cost of Conveyancing?

• Yes. Different states have different laws,
  legislation and Searches requirements.
• For example
• Victorian Sellers Requires Vendor Disclosure /
  Section 32 and Contract drafting High Labour
  Intensity
• Victorian Buyers Requires Vendor Disclosure /
  Section 32 and Contract review High Labour
  Intensity
• NSW Sellers Requires Vendor Disclosure / s 10.7
  drafting High Labour Intensity
• NSW Buyers Requires Vendor Disclosure / s 10.7
  review High Labour Intensity
• QLD Sellers No Vendor Disclosure / Agent
  typically drafts contract Medium Labour
  Intensity
• QLD Buyers Extensive Due Diligence High Labour
  Intensity

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What are the Standard Searches ?
Standard Searches are the bare minimum searches
required according to State legislation and
Conveyancing Law best practice. Provided that
your matter falls under the standard conveyance
(with no unusual circumstances), you are unlikely
to need any Additional Searches. Below is
the Think Conveyancing Standard Search Package
for each State.

• Victorian Buyers Standard Searches
• Victorian Sellers Standard Searches
• Queensland Buyers Standard Searches
• New South Wales Buyers Standard Searches
• New South Wales Sellers Standard Searches
• Tasmania Buyers Standard Searches
• Tasmania Sellers Standard Searches

While the Conveyancer works hard to keep within
the parameters of the Standard Searches,
sometimes, she/he may recommend that you order
Additional Searches.
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Additional Searches
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Why searches are A must
A Conveyancers job is to manage your risk. This
is why you cannot ask your Conveyancer to use
out of date searches, free searches, to
skimp on searches or do no searches at all.
Holding your Conveyancer to these demands
effectively handcuffs them and prevents them from
doing their job properly. For property
transactions that involve a significant quantum
of money, it is best practice to use up to date
and insured Search Certificates. If a provider
tells you that Searches are not required  be
suspicious. Due diligence with property is a
MUST, and it is impossible to do a high-quality
job without sufficient Searches (standard and
sometimes additional).
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Why Due Diligence is Needed to Determine Final
Price ?
Why Due Diligence is Needed To Determine Final
Price The above example demonstrates that the
Conveyancers often need to be knee deep in the
transaction before they can determine risk. Risk
and special circumstances cannot be discovered
until legal work commences. Conveyancers,
therefore, are uncertain of all costs until the
end of the settlement preparation process. In
other words, intensive diagnosis work throughout
the settlement and active due diligence are
needed for a safe conveyance. This is why final
pricing is so difficult. Risk is invisible until
discovered and conveyancing works is elastic!
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Why Due Diligence is Needed to Determine Final
Price ?

• As your Legal Team, it is our duty to ensure
  that
• All the legal paperwork is completed correctly
• All outstanding amounts owed e.g deposits,
  penalties, out of pocket costs are fairly
  transferred or paid for
• Should any changes be to the transaction be
  required, the correct legal protocol is followed.
• If any of these matters become unhinged, then
  risk is potentially introduced, and extra work
  may be required.
• The variable sum of all these works, the
  multi-dimensional paperwork requirements, the
  extra third-party costs and any out of ordinary
  legal labour to mitigate risk will determine your
  ultimate conveyancing fee. Finally, risk
  sometimes happens right at the last minute. This
  is why we can only calculate your final
  conveyancing invoice at settlement.

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yancing-fees
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Does the cost o the property affect the cost of
Conveyancing ?
In Australia, the cost of the property does not
affect the conveyancing price. The service fee
for a 350,000 residential property is the same
as a 2,000,000 residential property.
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Does the Type of Property affect the cost of
Conveyancing ?
Yes. For example, an Apartment generally has a
Body Corporate (Owners Corporation). This means
there will be an added Body Corporate search
required for the transaction.
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What else can effect cost ?
Search fees can vary dramatically across City
Councils (see the examples below for how fees
differ between locations). Also, it is the third
parties, and not the Conveyancer, that control
the cost of the Certificates. Note the huge
difference in prices between locations. This is
why you must always ask for an up-to-date quote.

• VICTORIA
• NEW SOUTH WALES
• QUEENSLAND

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Thank You
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yancing-fees