A conveyancer moves the legal ownership of a property from one person to another. The job ends on completion day, when the money moves and the keys change hands. Pay for the job depends on who you ask. So this guide shows each published figure with its publisher and its date.
What does a conveyancer do?#
A conveyancer handles the legal work of buying or selling a property in England and Wales. The National Careers Service lists the tasks. They advise on buying and selling, check who owns the land, draft contracts, handle property taxes and deal with lenders and agents. They then manage exchange and completion.
The law treats two of those tasks as reserved legal activities. They are preparing a transfer or charge for the purposes of the Land Registration Act 2002, and applying to register it (paragraph 5 of Schedule 2 to the Legal Services Act 2007). That is why the route you qualify by matters, and why the next sections cover it.
The skills are the same across the field. The pace is not. A resale runs on chains and lenders, a new build on a developer's timetable. Our article on how many live files is too many has a table of how each type behaves.
What happens on a purchase and a sale, step by step?#
A purchase runs from instruction to registration in eight steps, and a sale mirrors it. The seller's side drafts the contract. The buyer's conveyancer reads it and asks questions. Nothing binds either party until exchange.
Take instructions
The client instructs the firm. The conveyancer explains the stages, the costs and who does what.
Review the draft contract
The seller's side drafts the contract. The buyer's conveyancer reads it and checks who owns the property.
Raise enquiries
The buyer's conveyancer puts questions to the seller's side. The seller helps answer them, and details are negotiated if needed.
Order searches and deal with the lender
Searches are arranged and paid for. Any mortgage lender's requirements are dealt with.
Report to the client
The conveyancer advises the client on what was found and what the documents mean.
Exchange contracts
Both sides sign and swap final copies. The agreement to buy and sell becomes legally binding, and the contract sets the completion date.
Complete
The buyer's conveyancer pays the seller. The buyer receives the documents and the keys.
After completion
The Stamp Duty Land Tax return and payment are due within 14 days of completion. In Wales it is Land Transaction Tax. The new owner is then registered at HM Land Registry.
GOV.UK describes exchange and completion in these terms, and says an offer is not legally binding until contracts are exchanged. It says the conveyancer usually files the Stamp Duty Land Tax return and pays on the day of completion, then adds the tax to the bill. HM Land Registry registers ownership in England and Wales.
On a sale the roles swap. The seller's conveyancer drafts the contract, answers the buyer's questions with the seller's help and negotiates the terms if needed. One missed reply can hold a whole chain.
Who can be a conveyancer?#
Three regulated routes lead to running your own conveyancing files. You can be a solicitor, a licensed conveyancer, or a CILEX member or other person with conveyancing practice rights. Each has its own regulator and its own length.
| Route | Regulator | What its page says |
|---|---|---|
| Solicitor | Solicitors Regulation Authority | A degree in any subject or a Level 6 equivalent. Passes in SQE1 and SQE2. Two years' full-time or equivalent qualifying work experience, which can be in up to four organisations. You must also meet the character and suitability requirements. |
| Licensed conveyancer | Council for Licensed Conveyancers | A Level 4 diploma typically takes 18 to 24 months and may qualify you as a technician. A Level 6 diploma also typically takes 18 to 24 months. A first qualifying licence needs 1,200 hours of practical experience in a conveyancing role. |
| CILEX conveyancing practice rights | CILEx Regulation | Conveyancing rights are open to any person who can demonstrate competence, in any grade of CILEX membership. You do not have to be a CILEX member. |
| Apprenticeship | National Careers Service | A Level 4 higher apprenticeship as a legal technician, then a Level 6 degree apprenticeship as a licensed conveyancer. Apprenticeships take 2 to 5 years. |
Many start in the office. The National Careers Service describes joining a conveyancing, probate or private client team and completing six months of practical experience. You then register with the Council for Licensed Conveyancers as a technician and take the Level 6 diploma. A law degree or similar qualification can shorten the diplomas.
The same page says an experienced licensed conveyancer could manage a department, set up a firm or move into another area of law. If you are early in your career, read how to check supervision before your first law job before you pick an employer.
What does a conveyancer earn?#
No single published figure is right. The National Careers Service gives £25,000 for a starter and £65,000 for an experienced licensed conveyancer. Recruiter guides for 2026 sit higher for experienced staff. A job-board average sits lower.
£25,000 to £65,000
a year, from a starter to an experienced licensed conveyancer, on the profile page, which carries no date.
£45,000 to £75,000
the range law firms told one recruiter they pay at three years PQE and over, with London at £70,000 (July 2026).
£40,000 to £50,000
for a licensed conveyancer at a high street firm outside London with up to 100 employees. London high street is £48,000 to £60,000.
About £37,000
the average pay in more than 4,000 conveyancer salaries taken from Indeed job postings over 36 months, with a typical range of about £25,000 to £70,000 (captured 18 October 2026).
Read each one with its limits.
- The National Careers Service profile covers licensed conveyancers and gives no date.
- Ten Percent states that the figures are the salaries law firms have indicated to it for three years PQE and over. It is a recruiter's own record, not a survey.
- LR Legal is a recruiter that focuses on London and the South East. Its bands are for high street firms with up to 100 employees.
- Indeed counts pay from job postings at every level, from junior to senior.
We looked for a conveyancer salary survey from the Law Society, the SRA or the Council for Licensed Conveyancers and did not find one. That is why the sources above are mostly recruiters.
What moves a conveyancer's pay?#
Level, region, firm type, qualification, caseload, supervision duties and working flexibility all move pay, according to the recruiters who publish ranges. No source gives a weighting, so use the table as a list of questions. JMC Legal names working flexibility but gives no figure for it.
| Factor | What the sources say |
|---|---|
| Region | The Legists (17 August 2026) estimates experienced pay at £45,000 to £75,000 or more in London and £35,000 to £55,000 or more in the North West. It does not name the source of the table. |
| Firm type | JMC Legal (28 May 2026) gives an experienced conveyancer £40,000 to £60,000 at a high street firm and £50,000 to £75,000 at a regional or Legal 500 firm. It states no method. |
| Qualification | BCL Legal says conveyancers with formal qualifications will usually fall towards the top of each band. |
| Caseload and complexity | JMC Legal names caseload complexity and billing ability. BCL defines a senior conveyancer as someone who handles a complex caseload without supervision. |
| Supervision and team duties | JMC Legal names team management. BCL's top two levels lead a team or run a department. |
The sources do not agree on region, and that is worth seeing for yourself.
- Cardiff£41,583
- London£41,262
- Bristol£39,708
- Birmingham£39,094
- Newport£38,508
Source: Indeed, conveyancer salaries in the UK (captured 18 October 2026)
Indeed's London average sits close to Cardiff's. The Legists puts experienced London pay far above the North West. Both can be true, because Indeed averages every posting at every level. Compare the same level before you read anything into a regional gap.
Supply matters as well. Today's Conveyancer reported on 19 February 2026, on an IRN Legal Reports conveyancing report. It said only 10,724 solicitors were practising in residential conveyancing in England and Wales in January 2026. That is a drop of over 2,000 since the end of 2021. An older count is 11,226 solicitors in October 2023, down 13% on September 2021. Legal Futures reported it on 28 November 2023 for the whole UK, citing the UK law societies, so the two are not like for like. Take both as a direction and not a precise count. Firms can read how to keep conveyancers from leaving.
On this siteSee what is being paid nowOur salary guide sets out pay by role, so you can compare an offer with the market before you talk about your own number.Open the salary guideWhat is the career path for a conveyancer?#
Most conveyancers move from assistant or paralegal to a junior caseload, then senior fee earner, team leader and head of department. BCL Legal's 2025 survey defines the levels by what you can handle. That is a better guide than a job title.
Paralegal
The entry level in the survey. It is where many careers start.
Junior conveyancer
Can handle a small caseload of non-complex files.
Advanced conveyancer
Can handle a mixed caseload with supervision.
Senior conveyancer
Can handle a complex caseload without supervision.
Expert or team leader
Strong technical ability across the role, or experience leading and mentoring a team.
Head of department or team manager
Can run a busy department or a large team.
Here is what that ladder paid in the North West in BCL's survey.
- Paralegal£24,000
Range £20,000 to £28,000
- Junior conveyancer£28,000
Range £24,000 to £30,000
- Advanced conveyancer£35,000
Range £28,000 to £40,000
- Senior conveyancer£38,000
Range £35,000 to £46,000
- Expert or team leader£48,000
Range £38,000 to £55,000
- Head or manager£55,000
Range £45,000 to £70,000
Source: BCL Legal, Salary Survey 2025, regional and national conveyancing specialists (North West, mode)
The top of the ladder is where the sources disagree most.
| Source | Range | Note |
|---|---|---|
| BCL Legal, 2025 | £45,000 to £70,000 in the North West. £47,000 to £62,000 in the South East. | A recruiter's survey of conveyancing specialists. |
| The Legists, 17 August 2026 | £55,000 to £80,000 or more. | Estimate based on advertised vacancies and salary data. |
| JMC Legal, 28 May 2026 | £90,000 to £140,000 or more for head of conveyancing or operations leadership. | A recruiter's article. It states no method. |
Three sources, three answers. Ask what the department looks like before you read anything into the number.
What is the work really like?#
Busy, deadline-driven and detailed. The National Careers Service gives typical hours as 36 to 40 a week. Surveys of the wider sector report longer. LawCare's January to March 2025 survey found 78.7% of respondents were working over their contracted time. That covers all of law, not only conveyancing.
The Council for Licensed Conveyancers surveyed 733 people in 2025. Legal Futures reported the result on 1 June 2026. It found 17% of CLC lawyers and managers frequently felt unable to cope with their workload, and 72% said they were satisfied with their job.
On a normal Tuesday much of the day goes on chasing. A search has not come back. A lender has added a condition. The other side's conveyancer has not replied. The skill is keeping a full caseload moving without dropping a file. How many files is the right number has no official answer. Our article on live files and caseloads shows how to count your own and what to ask a firm.
Supervision matters most early on, when your work needs the most checking. The questions to ask are in our guide to checking supervision before your first law job.
How do you find a conveyancing role?#
Start with roles that show the pay and the working pattern, then compare them with the ranges above. Every Wilson Mannion advert shows the pay or earnings basis, the working pattern and the date. Our jobs page lists today's conveyancing roles, and our conveyancing recruitment page has more on conveyancing roles and the firms that hire for them.
Look at the place as well as the pay. Pay differs by place, so read the page for your city: Manchester or London. For Liverpool, Preston and Birmingham, start from the locations page. Then read the advert closely. Our guide to how to read a legal job advert explains the phrases that usually sit in front of a heavy caseload. Why legal job adverts should show the salary explains why the missing number matters.
Before you move, check how long a solicitor's notice period is. Think before you give a number too: see whether to tell a recruiter your current salary.
If you hire conveyancers, put the pay and the rough file count in the advert. Our guide to writing a conveyancer job advert shows how.
If you are a conveyancer weighing a move, the 20-minute screening call is confidential and costs you nothing. A named person looks after you, and no CV goes to a firm without your say so.
Sources
- National Careers Service: licensed conveyancer job profile (page undated)
- Ten Percent Legal Recruitment: Legal Salary Guide, July 2026 (published 23 July 2026)
- LR Legal: Salary Survey 2026 (a recruiter focused on London and the South East)
- BCL Legal: Salary Survey 2025, regional and national conveyancing specialists (a recruiter)
- Indeed: conveyancer salaries in the United Kingdom (figures as captured on 18 October 2026; Indeed updates the page often)
- The Legists: Residential conveyancing salary guide (dated 17 August 2026)
- JMC Legal: The conveyancing market in 2026, salaries and hiring trends (28 May 2026, a recruiter)
- SRA: Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) route
- SRA: qualifying work experience for candidates
- Council for Licensed Conveyancers: CLC diplomas
- Council for Licensed Conveyancers: trainees and routes to qualify
- CILEX: practice rights
- GOV.UK: Buying a home, transferring ownership
- GOV.UK: Buying a home, conveyancing
- GOV.UK: Stamp Duty Land Tax, how to pay
- legislation.gov.uk: Legal Services Act 2007, Schedule 2 (reserved legal activities)
- GOV.UK: HM Land Registry
- Legal Futures: Number of conveyancing solicitors slumps as market contracts (28 November 2023, UK figure citing the UK law societies)
- Legal Futures: CLC practices offer good but busy workplaces (CLC Workplace and Diversity Survey 2025, reported 1 June 2026)
- LawCare: Life in the Law 2025 (fieldwork January to March 2025)
- Today's Conveyancer: coverage of the IRN Legal Reports conveyancing report (19 February 2026)
This is general information, not legal advice. Where a figure comes from another organisation, the source is above, and we say when it is dated.