Difference between a solicitor and conveyancer

Interest rate announcement – September 2017

Today the Reserve Bank of Australia met to review the official cash rate. After last cutting rates in August 2016, the RBA have again decided to leave rates on hold at 1.50% this month. Nonetheless, we have seen some lenders starting to increase their variable and fixed interest rates out of cycle and we expect others to follow suit.

A conveyancer is a solicitor, but just deals with property, right? Wrong. The two are very different, and it is important to have the right one working for you, in order to avoid paying too much while still getting the advice you need.

Buying a property is likely to be one of the biggest decisions most of us will make over our lifetime and so its important that you get it right.

The laws, regulations, taxes and process in relation to purchasing, selling and renting properties vary in every state and territory. This is why its important to get legal advice from either a conveyancer or a solicitor throughout the process. We outline the key differences between the two below:

Conveyancers

If the property purchase is fairly straightforward, a conveyancer is likely to be sufficient. Their main responsibilities include giving advice and information about the sale or purchase of a property and to provide assistance with preparing documentation and completing the settlement process.

However, conveyancers are not qualified lawyers and are licensed to provide advice strictly relating to the transactional aspects of a property purchase or sale and cannot provide any advice on other legal matters (e.g. estate planning).

Conveyancers are generally less expensive than solicitors because they generally have less expertise and the scope of the advice they can provide is restricted.

Solicitors

While conveyancers are limited to advising on the property sale or purchase, solicitors can provide you with a wide range of legal advice that relates specifically to the sale as well as other matters. This may be necessary if your property transaction is not straightforward.

Such areas where you may need more holistic legal advice include property purchases or sales in which issues of family law, asset protection, asset ownership structuring, tax law or estate planning may apply. A Solicitor is able to provide advice on all of these matters where a conveyancer is not.

Although solicitors are more expensive, the extra investment is often worthwhile, particularly if there could be any potential legal issues during the transaction.