Three quotes arrive in three different shapes and none of them is comparable. This puts them on one footing and totals the real cost.
It does not estimate what a conveyancer charges. Fees are set by individual firms and vary by state, by matter and by firm.
Puts conveyancing quotes on the same footing — GST in or out, disbursements in or out — and totals what the legal side of a purchase will actually cost you.
The professional fee already includes GST
The single most common reason two quotes cannot be compared. Getting this wrong in either direction moves the total by a tenth.
Searches and disbursements
Amounts the conveyancer pays on your behalf and passes through. Some quotes bundle them into the fee and some list them separately, which is the other reason quotes are hard to compare.
Another quote, all in
A competing all-inclusive figure. Enter zero to skip the comparison and just total the one quote.
The total is what you will actually pay for the legal side of the purchase. Compare it against the all-in quote you entered, not against the professional fee on either.
The professional fee as a share of the total tells you where the money is going. Where disbursements dominate, the firms are competing on a small slice and switching saves less than it appears to.
The GST lines are shown separately so you can see the adjustment that was applied. If the number surprises you, the inclusive-or-exclusive switch is usually the reason.
Every figure below is computed by the same calculator on this page, from the inputs described. Nothing here is typed in by hand, so an example cannot disagree with the tool.
The fee excluding GST is what a competitor quoting exclusive would show. Comparing an inclusive quote against an exclusive one without adjusting is how a cheaper-looking firm turns out to be dearer.
The difference line is the honest comparison. A negative figure means the quote you detailed is the cheaper one once everything is counted.
Extracting GST from an inclusive amount divides by one plus the rate. Adding GST to an exclusive amount multiplies by it. Those are different operations and confusing them is precisely the error this exists to prevent.
Disbursements and government fees are totalled as entered rather than adjusted, because their treatment varies by item — some carry GST and some do not, and only the invoice knows which.
One rate on the professional fee
The rate you enter is applied to the professional fee only. It is not applied to searches, settlement or registration.
The quote is for a standard matter
Off-the-plan purchases, deceased estates, related-party transfers and anything with a title defect commonly attract extra fees that no quote for a standard matter includes.
No price is estimated
If you have no quotes, this calculator has nothing to work with. Get two or three and come back.
Cheapest is not always best
Conveyancing is one of the few purchase costs where the work genuinely differs. A firm that spots a problem in a contract earns its fee many times over.
Brackets the cost of completing a purchase: transfer duty exactly from the statutory scale, and the professional fees you have been quoted as a low-to-high range.
Adds transfer duty to your deposit and the other upfront costs, to show the cash you need to complete a purchase.
Works out what is left after agent commission, marketing, legal fees and repaying the loan.
This calculator can be embedded on a business website, branded to match it, with a call to action that sends the enquiry to that business rather than collecting anything here.