Short answer
Check the licence first — conveyancers need a licence for some work and not other work. Then check that the business is who it says it is: of the 807 Australian conveyancers in this directory, only 13% publish an ABN you can confirm, and 7.2% list a phone number that contradicts the one on their own website.
Conveyancers handle contract review, title searches, settlement and the legal transfer of a property you are buying or selling. This is what to check before you sign a contract for a property, and what the evidence says about the category as a whole.
Conveyancers are licensed for some work and not others
Most states and territories license conveyancers separately from solicitors, and a licensed conveyancer there is a regulated professional with insurance behind them. In Queensland and the ACT conveyancing is done by solicitors, so a conveyancing business there is a law practice. Either way, settlement money moves through regulated trust accounts, and the biggest risk in the whole process is email fraud redirecting it.
Search the conveyancer licence register run by your state's consumer affairs or fair trading body; in Queensland and the ACT check the law society register instead.
What 807 Australian conveyancers actually publish
We check every business in this directory the same way, and publish the result whether it flatters the trade or not. For conveyancers:
| What we checked | Conveyancers | All trades |
|---|---|---|
| Publish an ABN we could confirm | 13% | 21.5% |
| Listed phone matches their own website | 69.3% | 59.2% |
| Listed phone contradicts their own website | 7.2% | 7.7% |
| Website responded when we checked | 86.4% | 81% |
| Corroborated by two or more sources | 75.4% | 81.1% |
| Median number of Google reviews | 56 | 39 |
What goes wrong with conveyancers
- Payment-redirection fraud, where a faked email changes the bank account for your deposit or settlement funds
- A fee quote that excludes the searches and disbursements that make up half the bill
- Nobody reviewing the contract before you sign it
What to ask before the work starts
- What is your conveyancer licence number, or your practising certificate if you are a solicitor?
- What is the all-in fee including searches and disbursements?
- How will you confirm bank details with me before any money moves?
A conveyancer who answers all three of those without hesitating is telling you something useful. One who is vague about a licence number is telling you something too.
The median matters more than the average
The median conveyancer in this directory has 56 Google reviews. That is the number to hold in your head when you see a perfect five-star rating: five stars from four reviews and 4.6 from three hundred are not comparable, and the second is almost always the safer hire.
It is also why the ranking here weights review volume more heavily than review score. A business cannot buy its position, and a handful of glowing reviews does not move it far.
Where the conveyancers are
Perth (37), Craigieburn (35), Hoppers Crossing (33), Central Coast (28), Glen Waverley (24), Joondalup (24). A shortlist for your own area is more useful than a national ranking — the best conveyancer in the country is no help if they are four states away.
Where to check a licence, by state
There is no national register. Search the licence number with the regulator for the state where the work is happening.
- NSWNSW Fair Tradingbuilders, electricians, plumbers and specialist trades
- VICBuilding and Plumbing Commission, and Energy Safe Victoria for electricalbuilding practitioners and plumbers; electricians are Energy Safe Victoria
- QLDQueensland Building and Construction Commission (QBCC)building and most trade contractor licences
- WABuilding and Energybuilders, electricians, plumbers and gas fitters
- SAConsumer and Business Servicesbuilding work contractors and supervisors
- TASConsumer, Building and Occupational Services (CBOS)building and occupational licences
- ACTAccess Canberraconstruction occupations licensing
- NTNT Government building practitioner registrationbuilding practitioners and electrical workers
Common questions
- Do conveyancers need a licence in Australia?
- Sometimes. Most states and territories license conveyancers separately from solicitors, and a licensed conveyancer there is a regulated professional with insurance behind them. In Queensland and the ACT conveyancing is done by solicitors, so a conveyancing business there is a law practice. Either way, settlement money moves through regulated trust accounts, and the biggest risk in the whole process is email fraud redirecting it.
- How do I check a conveyancer's licence?
- Search the conveyancer licence register run by your state's consumer affairs or fair trading body; in Queensland and the ACT check the law society register instead.
- What percentage of Australian conveyancers have a verifiable ABN?
- 13% of the 807 conveyancers in this directory publish an ABN we could confirm against the national register, against 21.5% across all trades.
- How many reviews should a conveyancer have?
- The median conveyancer here has 56. Treat a five-star rating from a handful of reviews with more caution than a slightly lower rating from hundreds.
Compare conveyancers near you
807 conveyancers, ranked on the evidence described above rather than on advertising.
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