Conveyancing costs NSW: fee ranges for buyers and sellers
Buyers in NSW typically pay somewhere between $2,000 and $3,000 in professional conveyancing fees, while sellers usually land between $2,500 and $3,500. . Check whether the figure quoted to you includes GST. Some firms quote GST-inclusive, others don’t, and a 10% gap on a $2,000 fee is real money.
Sellers generally sit at the higher end because the job carries more upfront work. Contract preparatoin, ordering a title search, section 10.7 planning certificates, and (if it’s a strata property) the strata report, all before a buyer even makes an offer. Buyers, by contrast, are mostly reviewing documents someone else prepared.
Several factors push a quote up or down within these bands:
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Strata or off-the-plan properties need extra document review and often a specialist strata report.
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Multiple titles or a subdivided lot mean more searches and more registration steps.
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Deceased estates or transactions involving a trust add legal complexity that a standard sale doesn’t have.
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Rural properties can trigger extra searches for water rights, easements, or heritage overlays.
A straightforward unit purchase in a well-run building will sit near the bottom of the range. A rural acreage sale with an unusual title history will sit near the top, or above it. If you’re selling, our seller’s guide to NSW property sale costs breaks down exactly what you’re paying for at each stage.
What should a conveyancing quote include?
A proper quote has two distinct halves, and understanding the difference is the single best thing you can do to compare providers fairly.
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Professional fees cover the conveyancer or solicitor’s own work: reviewing or drafting the contract, advising you on special conditions, conducting or reviewing searches, liaising with the other side’s representative, and attending settlement.
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Disbursements are the out-of-pocket costs the firm pays to third parties on your behalf, such as title searches, council and water certificates, and NSW Land Registry Services registration fees.
What are the common disbursements in a NSW property transaction?
Disbursements are where a lot of buyers and sellers get caught out, because they assume the quoted fee is the whole story. It rarely is.
Here’s what typically shows up on a NSW conveyancing invoice:
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NSW LRS registration fees: registering a transfer and registering a mortgage each carry a fixed government fee, published around $175.70 per dealing for 2025–26 according to LegalClarity’s NSW fee breakdown.
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PEXA settlement fees: almost every NSW settlement now runs through the PEXA electronic platform, which charges per transaction for the transfer, mortgage registration, and any discharge of an existing mortgage.
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Title searches: a routine search confirming who legally owns the property and whether there are any encumbrances.
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Council Section 10.7 certificates and Sydney Water (section 603) certificates: standard disclosures confirming rates, zoning, and any outstanding water charges.
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Strata inspection reports: for unit or townhouse purchases, expect $350 to $450 for a report. Althought this report would sit outside the conveyancing quote.
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Building and pest inspections: expect around $500.00 depending on the level of detail you require. Althought this report would sit outside the conveyancing quote.
Tip: Skipping the strata report to save $350-$450 is one of the most expensive shortcuts a unit buyer can make. Special levies for building defects or lift replacements can run into the thousands, and the report is often the only warning you get.
Overall, disbursements usually add several hundred dollars to conveyancing professional fees. Confirm current figures with your solicitoras fees can change annually.
What other large costs should you budget for beyond conveyancing fees?
Transfer duty is almost always the biggest number on your settlement statement, and it has nothing to do with your conveyancer’s fee. Revenue NSW calculates transfer duty on a sliding scale based on the property’s purchase price, and you can estimate your own figure using the Revenue NSW transfer duty calculator before you even make an offer.
Other costs to factor into your budget alongside the conveyancing fee itself:
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Transfer duty, calculated on the purchase price, payable by the buyer.
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First Home Buyer Assistance concessions, which can reduce or eliminate duty for eligible buyers. Our guide to first home buyer changes in NSW sets out current thresholds.
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Mortgage registration fees, charged by NSW LRS when your lender registers its interest.
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Strata levies and council rate adjustments, settled between buyer and seller at settlement based on who owned the property for which portion of the billing period. Our explainer on settlement adjustments covers how these are calculated.
Confirm your eligibility for any duty concession early. It can materially change your total budget.
How do you get an accurate, comparable conveyancing quote?
A written quote that separates professional fees, disbursements, and GST is a good start.
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Are disbursements charged at cost, or does the firm add a mark up?
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Is the fee fixed, or does it increase if the transaction becomes complex?
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What’s the expected turnaround from instruction to exchange?
Tip: The cheapest quote isn’t always the cheapest outcome. A firm that skips detail at the quoting stage often skips detail during the transaction too, and a missed title defect or unread special condition can cost far more than the fee difference ever would.
How long does conveyancing take in NSW, and what causes delays?
Most NSW transactions run around six weeks from exchange to settlement, though the full process from first instruction can start weeks earlier while contracts are prepared and reviewed.
Delays typically come from finance approval taking longer than expected, title defects surfacing late, outstanding rates or land tax needing resolution, or strata records arriving incomplete. Simultaneous settlements, where your sale depends on another purchase settling on the same day, add another layer of risk. A solicitor with PEXA readiness and a habit of chasing documents early catches most of these problems before they become a last-minute scramble.
Why choose a PEXA-certified NSW solicitor?
West Legal & Associates is PEXA certified and offers both in-person and online consultations, so location never limits your access to advice. Every quote we issue itemises professional fees against disbursements, with PEXA and NSW LRS charges disclosed upfront rather than surfacing at settlement.
Get a fixed-fee or itemised conveyancing quote
If you’re weighing up quotes right now, the comparison only works when every provider itemises the same way, and that’s the standard we hold ourselves to at West Legal & Associates. We offer NSW conveyancing with full PEXA electronic settlement capability, and depending on your transaction, either a fixed-fee or time-billed arrangement, disclosed clearly before you commit to anything.
Getting started is straightforward: send through a copy of your contract or contact us if you’re selling, and we’ll put together an itemised quote that separates our professional fee from every disbursement you’ll face, GST included. From there we can arrange an in-person or online consultation, whichever suits your situation.
Where to check current NSW fees and duty rates
Confirm live figures directly: Revenue NSW transfer duty, PEXA fee information, and NSW Government conveyancing guidance. Statutory fees update annually.
This article is general information, not a substitute for advice from a qualified lawyer. Consult a qualified legal professional about your own circumstances before acting on anything here.
Sources
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Conveyancing for property buyers and sellers | NSW Government
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Conveyancing in Sydney: What the process costs and how long it takes – SolicitorMag
FAQ
What is the typical conveyancing fee in NSW?
Buyers usually pay between $2,000 and $3,000 in professional fees, and sellers between $2,500 and $3,500. Disbursements and transfer duty are separate and additional.
What counts as a reasonable conveyancing fee?
A reasonable fee sits within the typical NSW bands and comes with a fully itemised written quote showing professional fees, disbursements, and GST separately. If a quote is vague or refuses itemisation, that’s a bigger concern than the number itself.
Is a solicitor cheaper than a conveyancer?
Not necessarily. Both fall within similar fee ranges for standard residential transactions, though a solicitor may charge more for complex matters involving deceased estates, trusts, or disputes because that work sits outside routine conveyancing.
Who pays conveyancing fees when selling a house?
The seller pays their own conveyancer’s professional fees and disbursements, and the buyer pays theirs separately. Each party engages and pays their own representative.
Are transfer duty and conveyancing fees the same thing?
No. Transfer duty is a state tax (ie. stamp duty) calculated on the purchase price and paid to Revenue NSW by the buyer, while conveyancing fees pay for the legal work and are entirely separate costs.
This article is general information only and does not constitute legal advice. Property transactions involve significant financial and legal obligations specific to your circumstances. Contact West Legal & Associates for advice tailored to your situation before exchanging contracts.
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