Western Australia remains the only Australian jurisdiction sets maximum fees for settlement agents and land valuers.

The proposal to deregulate fees for settlement agents and land valuers is not new and is supported by industry professional associations and many of their members. It is also supported by reviews undertaken to promote competition and reduce red tape for business. The need to retain fee regulation is also questioned by evidence fee regulation has been redundant for many years as the competition within the market place for both industries is such the maximum fee is not usually charged.

This consultation paper proposes fees charged by settlement agents and land valuers be deregulated and legislation be amended to ensure consumers are provided with information to assist them make informed choices about service providers.

• consultation paper
• response survey

You are invited to make a submission in response to the paper. There is no specific format for submissions and you are welcome to write a letter outlining your general views or respond to particular issues raised in the paper.

If possible, please provide evidence to support your views, for example by including relevant statistics or examples. You are welcome to raise additional issues or areas of concern regarding the regulation of fees charged by settlement agents and land valuers even if they have not been specifically addressed within the discussion paper.

In order to facilitate feedback, a version of the questions appearing at the end of the paper can be completed as an online survey.

Responses should be received by Thursday 31 July 2014.

Enquiries can be made by calling Consumer Protection's Advice Line on 1300 304 054 or by email.