Conveyancer and Legal Executive - Career Advice - Office and Administration

Conveyancers and Legal Executives act for and on behalf of clients in the areas of property transfer, company and business law, trusts, wills, probate and litigation. Conveyancers prepare the documentation required for the purchase and sale of real estate and attend to property settlements.

Conveyancers must have a sound knowledge of land law, land division, surveying, property development, property management, strata administration, insurance, taxation, business analysis, investment and contracts.Conveyancers may communicate with clients, real estate agents, banks, building societies and finance companies, as well as government departments and rating authorities.

Unless you’re a lawyer or have plenty of free time on your hands, you will need a professional conveyancer to handle the legalities of purchasing or selling a property. Once you sign a contract of sale to purchase a house, that’s only the beginning of the process. There are many considerations that need to be looked at and checks that should be carried out before the sale is finalised, otherwise known as “settlement”.

So, when you hand over your hard-earned money to a conveyancer to handle the transaction, they actually put it to good use by handling a range of matters to ensure your rights are protected and the sale goes smoothly. In broader terms, a conveyancer is responsible for making sure you meet all the legal obligations involved in your property transaction. Along with protecting your rights throughout the process, the scope of work that a conveyancer covers will vary depending on the complexity of the property transaction.

ANZSCO ID: 599111

Alternative names: Property Conveyancer and Settlement Agent

Knowledge, skills and attributes

the ability to explain complex legal information to clients
good research skills
integrity and sound judgement
the ability to deal with people from all backgrounds
accuracy and attention to detail
problem-solving skills.

(Source: Conveyancing)

Duties and Tasks

One of the most important and essential responsibilities of a conveyancer is the preparation of all the documents needed in your real estate transaction. Your conveyancer will manage the transfer documents to ensure the property is rightfully and legally transferred to or from your name. It’s also the conveyancer’s job to ensure that the documents comply with legal regulations in your respective territory or state.

A conveyancer will carry out all the relevant searches required in your respective jurisdiction and also prepare all the relevant settlement documents. A lot of people don’t know this but when you purchase property, any debt or negative interest on the property will be transferred to you once it settles in your name if you don’t do your due diligence. The conveyancer’s job is to protect you by undertaking the relevant enquiries and ensuring the relevant adjustments are made at settlement. If there is any debt on the property (which is quite common even in small amounts), the conveyancer prepares the statement of adjustments and ensure you don’t inherit any of these issues (if you are the buyer). Some examples of searches that a conveyancer may do include:

Title search: to ensure the property belongs to the seller and confirm whether any debts or liabilities exist on the property

Local authority searches: check whether there are any future plans to develop the area upon which the land lies (ie. build a motorway, develop an apartment complex etc)

Risk of bushfire, flood etc: weigh up the risk of whether the land is prone to bush fires or severe flooding
Structural: ensure the property is structurally sound

Pest report: check there are no pre-existing problems with insects and termites, the last thing you want is to provide an offer and find out there is a termite infestation

Strata (if apartment): find out whether the building is running on a deficit or is able to sustain the running of the complex

The seller will attach the mandatory searches to the contract of sale. Any additional searches will need to be obtained by the buyer. Searches like pest and strata are generally not included by the seller. As a buyer, you of course don’t need to do all the searches and can instruct your conveyancer as to which ones best suit your particular situation. For instance, if you are purchasing a house then a strata search is not going to help you. Some checks can be undertaken after your offer has been accepted however some checks like pest and title are best done before entering into any contract of sale.

As a conveyancer, your main duties would include:

prepare and advise on contracts for the sale of real estate
conduct title searches and make enquiries with various government departments, local councils and water authorities
prepare and advise on mortgage documentation
attend to exchange-of-contracts and settlement procedures
prepare and advise on lease documentation
advise clients on the contractual requirements for the sale of real estate
conduct title and other government searches and enquiries
establish who legally owns the property being bought
drafting contracts with details of the sale
liaising with mortgage lenders, real estate agents and solicitors
prepare contracts and transfer documents
prepare and advise on lease documentation
attend property settlements and exchange contracts
check that contracts are signed and exchanged
keep records of payments

Keys to house
(Source: Brian Deegan Lawyers)

Working conditions

As a conveyancer, you would typically work standard office hours, Monday to Friday. Part-time work may be available. Some conveyancers are self-employed and work hours to suit their clients.

Conveyancers work for law firms, specialist conveyancing businesses, banks and other financial institutions. Some conveyancers are self-employed.

You would be based in an office or home office, and you may travel to visit clients and government offices.

You may be required to be working under the supervision of a qualified solicitor.

Education and training/entrance requirements

An Associate Degree, Advanced Diploma or Diploma, or at least 3 years of relevant experience is usually needed to work in this job. Around one in four workers have a university degree. Even with a qualification, experience or on-the-job training is usually needed. Registration or licensing may be required.

Additional Information

To work as a conveyancer in NSW, you must be licensed by NSW Fair Trading. To be licensed you must be over 18, have completed a conveyancing course and gained 1 year of practical experience.

In the ACT, there is no licensing or registration for conveyancers, however, anyone performing the duties of a conveyancer must be working under the supervision of a solicitor.

Employment Opportunities

Conveyancers are generally self-employed or work in conveyancing businesses, law firms, financial institutions, banks, building societies and some government departments.

In NSW, conveyancers employed by financial institutions generally specialise in finance and must have experience with land transactions. Those who are self-employed may also need to maintain accurate records related to running an office, such as accounts.

Due to the lack of formal recognition of conveyancers in the ACT, conveyancers are not able to operate by themselves. Practitioners generally work for law firms as paralegals or solicitors, specialising in conveyancing.