Who each state names, and where doing it yourself stops
| State | Who the state names | Doing it yourself | A limit worth knowing |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | The contract is prepared by an Australian legal practitioner or a licensed conveyancer before the property goes on the market. Conveyancers must be licensed with NSW Fair Trading. | NSW’s conveyancing page says you can do your own conveyancing, though most people engage a licensed conveyancer or solicitor. NSW’s page on contracts says the contract a home is marketed with is one prepared by a lawyer or licensed conveyancer, so the two pages read differently; a solicitor or licensed conveyancer can say which applies to your sale. You stay personally liable for problems with the sale, even when you followed a set of instructions. | All settlements are completed electronically, and the parties need to be represented by solicitors or conveyancers who subscribe to the system. |
| VIC | Consumer Affairs Victoria says a seller without an agent will need to engage a conveyancer or legal practitioner to prepare the Section 32 statement and the contract of sale. | Victoria describes conveyancing as the transfer of ownership from seller to buyer, and says that if you do your own conveyancing, you go without the professional indemnity insurance a legal practitioner or conveyancer would have if something goes wrong. Its pages do not say a seller may prepare the contract or the Section 32 statement themselves. | A non-lawyer who runs a conveyancing business for a fee must be licensed by the Business Licensing Authority. |
| QLD | A solicitor: Queensland recommends getting independent legal advice before you sell, and a solicitor’s check of the contract before you sign it. | Selling privately, it is your responsibility to include the warning statement about the cooling-off period, which must sit directly above the place where the buyer signs. | Who may prepare a Queensland contract is not covered here. |
| SA | A qualified conveyancer or solicitor, to meet the legal requirements, including preparing the contract, which must be in writing, and filling out the Form 1 vendor’s statement. | South Australia says you do not have to hire a conveyancer or solicitor, but if you sell a property yourself, you must prepare all the legal documents and make sure you fully understand the legislation and regulations that apply. | You cannot lodge the documents that transfer the property yourself: only a conveyancer or solicitor with access to an electronic lodgement system can. |
| WA | Unless you are a suitably qualified lawyer, WA’s advice is to use a licensed settlement agent or a lawyer. | Someone with no solicitor or licensed settlement agent acting for them is called a self-represented party, and must have their identity verified by an identifier the Registrar of Titles has authorised. | Settlement agents must disclose their service fees in writing before any agreement. |
| TAS | Under the Conveyancing Act 2004, only a licence holder may run a conveyancing business for fee or reward, unless they are a legal practitioner. | Not covered here. | A conveyancer in business must be insured under a professional indemnity policy approved by the Director. |
| NT | A licensed conveyancing agent or a solicitor, though the Territory says you may also do the work yourself. | You are not covered by the insurance conveyancers and solicitors carry, and you are responsible for the cost of any mistake. | Northern Territory law requires every property sale to use a contract of sale form approved by the Registrar or the Law Society of the NT. Real estate and conveyancing agents may prepare or finalise a contract only on a form approved for use by people other than lawyers, either by the Law Society Northern Territory or by the Registrar of Land, Business and Conveyancing Agents. |
| ACT | Not covered here. | If you represent yourself in the lodgement process, you cannot use the ACT’s e-conveyancing platform. | Legal practitioners and financial institutions can only take part in e-conveyancing if they meet an insurance threshold the ACT describes as unreasonable to expect of individuals. |
Conveyancer or solicitor: what each may do
NSW puts it simply: conveyancers and solicitors are equally qualified to do conveyancing. The difference shows at the edges of the work.
In Victoria, licensed conveyancers may do some legal work in connection with a conveyancing transaction, such as preparing agreements, transfers and mortgages, but a non-lawyer conveyancer may not do legal work that falls outside conveyancing. In the Northern Territory, solicitors can do all conveyancing work and also give legal advice on other matters.
Both carry insurance for your protection. In NSW, both must hold professional indemnity insurance, which covers you if they make a mistake or are negligent in their work.
What the states warn about
NSW puts it most plainly: “If you do your own conveyancing, you take on all the responsibility for the sale progressing in a legal manner. Make sure you fully understand the sale process and relevant legislation.”
Elsewhere, the warnings share one theme: the insurance you give up. Victoria’s warning, above, is about the insurance you give up; the Northern Territory says that if you make a mistake, the costs are yours.
Some limits are practical rather than legal. In NSW every settlement is electronic and needs a subscribing solicitor or conveyancer on each side, and in South Australia the transfer can only be lodged by a conveyancer or solicitor with access to an electronic lodgement system. In those two states, at least part of this job passes to a professional in every sale.
Checking the person, and the price of the work
- NSW says to check that a conveyancer is licensed before choosing one. NSW Fair Trading’s register of conveyancer licences also records disciplinary findings and payments from the compensation fund.
- Victoria keeps a public register of licensed conveyancers, where you can check a conveyancer’s licence details.
- NSW suggests asking for an itemised statement of the likely costs before the work starts. Queensland suggests asking a solicitor for a detailed quote, noting that some charge a set price.