Conveyancing cost in WA: settlement agent fees from $700 to $2,500

In Western Australia, the professional who handles your property transfer is a settlement agent, not a "conveyancer" (though the two terms mean the same licensed work here, see the settlement agent versus conveyancer guide). A settlement agent typically charges $700 to $2,500 for a standard residential matter, but that professional fee is only a slice of the total. The largest single cost is transfer duty (WA's name for stamp duty), and on top of that sit disbursements and a Landgate lodgement fee. This guide sets out every part, with the duty and registry figures computed from the current RevenueWA and Landgate rates.

Where the $700 to $2,500 range comes from

Published WA fee guides put a standard residential settlement in a fairly wide band because buyer and seller work differs. North Shore Conveyancing's WA fee guide quotes a seller settlement at "usually between $700 to $2,000 inc. GST" and a buyer settlement at "usually between $1,000 to $2,500 inc. GST". Rezzi's WA settlement agent cost guide quotes a narrower typical range of $800 to $1,500 for a buyer and $800 to $1,200 for a seller, with disbursements (Landgate fees and searches) adding a further $200 to $600. These are market ranges, not a regulated fee scale (WA deregulated settlement agent fees, so agents set their own rates), so always ask for a written fixed-fee quote for your own matter.

That professional fee is separate from, and usually much smaller than, the government charge a buyer pays. The table below shows the full picture.

Total cost of buying in WA at five price points

The transfer duty and Landgate figures below are computed from the current RevenueWA general rate and the Landgate transfer lodgement fee, and the professional fee and disbursements are the market ranges above. Duty here is shown at the general rate; an eligible first home buyer usually pays much less (see how first home buyers pay less).

Transfer duty computed from the RevenueWA transfer duty general rate (effective since 1 July 2008). Landgate lodgement fee from the Landgate transfer lodgement fee calculator (2026/27). Professional fee and disbursement ranges are market estimates (North Shore Conveyancing and Rezzi, 2025/2026), not official figures. Excludes any foreign transfer duty surcharge, loan costs, and building or pest inspections.

Professional fee versus disbursements

A WA settlement quote should always separate two things:

1. Professional (settlement) fee: what your settlement agent charges for their time and expertise. Fees are deregulated in WA, so this is negotiated directly and varies between practices, which is where the $700 to $2,500 spread comes from.
2. Disbursements: the third-party costs your settlement agent pays on your behalf, such as Landgate title searches, the PEXA electronic settlement fee, and the Landgate lodgement fee itself. Most of these are set by government or third parties, not by the settlement agent.

A quote that shows only a professional fee, with no estimate of disbursements, is incomplete. Ask for a single figure that includes both.

Buyer costs in WA

As a buyer in WA, budget for the following on top of your deposit and purchase price:

• Settlement agent fee: about $700 to $2,500 for a standard matter (market estimate). Purchases usually sit at the higher end of the range because a buyer's settlement agent runs more searches and correspondence with your lender than a seller's does.
• Transfer duty: paid to RevenueWA on the greater of the price or unencumbered value. This is the largest cost for most buyers (see the table above).
• Disbursements: Landgate title searches, the searches your settlement agent runs before settlement, roughly $200 to $600 (market estimate).
• Landgate lodgement fee: the fee to lodge the transfer of land, which scales with the price (see the table above).
• PEXA settlement fee: the electronic settlement platform charges a fee to each party to a settlement.
• Building and pest inspection: not a settlement fee, but a cost most buyers incur before signing the Offer and Acceptance contract, arranged separately.

Seller costs in WA

As a seller in WA, your settlement costs are lighter than in states that require a formal vendor disclosure statement, because WA has no mandatory pre-contract disclosure document for your settlement agent to assemble:

• Settlement agent fee: often at the lower end of the range, because there is no statutory disclosure statement to prepare, unlike Victoria's Section 32 or South Australia's Form 1.
• Title search and standard searches: your settlement agent still confirms title and any encumbrances before settlement, a smaller disbursement than a buyer's search bundle.
• Mortgage discharge cost: if you have a loan on the property, your lender charges a discharge fee to release its security at settlement. This is paid to the lender, not your settlement agent.
• Estate agent commission: usually the largest cost of selling, and separate from settlement fees.

A seller does not pay transfer duty on a straightforward residential sale; duty is a buyer cost. Any capital gains tax is a separate matter for your accountant. The full vendor's side, including why there is no disclosure statement to prepare, is in the selling property in WA guide.

Transfer duty: the biggest cost

Transfer duty is a RevenueWA tax, administered by the Department of Treasury and Finance (RevenueWA). It is a graduated tax: the higher the price, the higher the effective rate. Because it dwarfs the professional fee, it deserves its own detailed guide, which sets out the general rate table, the first home owner rate, and a calculator.

See Transfer duty WA: rates and the first home owner rate for the full duty picture and to estimate your own amount.

How first home buyers pay less

The duty figures in the table above are the general rate. WA's first home owner rate (FHOR) of duty is not a sliding taper like Victoria's; it is a flat concessional rate that applies only between a nil-duty threshold and a hard value cap:

• No duty at all up to $500,000, for an established or new home in the metro or Peel region.
• A concessional rate between $500,000 and a $700,000 cap: for example, at $600,000 the first home owner duty is $13,630, compared with $22,515 at the general rate.
• Above the cap, no concession applies at all, and ordinary transfer duty is payable on the full price, not just the amount over the cap. Unlike Victoria's owner-occupier rate, this is genuinely calibrated so duty converges to close to the general rate right at the cap rather than jumping sharply, but crossing it still means losing the concession entirely.

Full eligibility rules, the vacant land thresholds, and worked examples across the whole range are in the first home buyer WA guide.

How to compare WA quotes honestly

When you gather quotes, ask each settlement agent for a written breakdown that separates their professional fee from an itemised estimate of disbursements, states whether the quote is fixed or can vary, and lists what is not included. The cheapest headline fee is not always the cheapest total, because a low professional fee can sit next to a thin disbursements estimate. Compare like for like.

Conveyancing Explained provides general information about property transactions in Australia. It is not legal advice and does not create a client relationship. For advice on your situation, engage a licensed conveyancer, settlement agent, or property solicitor in your state or territory.