The Victorian title register
Victorian land is registered under the Transfer of Land Act 1958, and the Registrar of Titles maintains the register through Land Use Victoria. A register search statement shows the registered proprietor and recorded interests such as mortgages, caveats, covenants, easements and section 173 agreements. Victoria has moved most dealings to electronic lodgement, so mortgages, discharges and caveats are generally lodged online by a lawyer or conveyancer.
Ask your adviser for a current search statement and the title plan for every property offered as security. Covenants and planning agreements can limit what may be built or how a property may be used, which matters to a lender's valuation and to your exit if you plan to sell or develop.
Land tax and duty in Victoria
The State Revenue Office Victoria administers land transfer duty and land tax. Victorian land tax is assessed on the land you own at midnight on 31 December each year, with your principal place of residence generally exempt. Investment, vacant and commercial land held as security, or kept during a bridging overlap that crosses 31 December, can therefore attract land tax for the following year. Victoria has also introduced a commercial and industrial property tax for qualifying properties that change hands from 1 July 2024, so ask how that affects a commercial purchase or sale.
If the loan helps you buy property, land transfer duty applies to the purchase. See the Victorian stamp duty page for an indicative estimate and its limitations.
Melbourne and regional Victoria
Melbourne dominates the state's property market, with large regional cities in Geelong, Ballarat and Bendigo. Lenders may value smaller towns and farm or lifestyle properties more cautiously because buyers can be fewer. For the capital, see private lenders in Melbourne.
Two Victorian illustrations
Example only, not a real client. A Melbourne couple plans to replace a bank loan on a rental property with a short private first mortgage before selling. Their conveyancer obtains the search statement, the payout figure and advice on whether holding the rental past 31 December affects their next land tax assessment.
Example only, not a real client. A Geelong developer reviews a site with a section 173 agreement recorded on title. The lawyer obtains the agreement and explains its conditions before the developer relies on a feasibility or finance proposal. Neither example suggests that a lender would accept the security.
First mortgage checks specific to Victoria
A private first mortgage in Victoria is registered with the Victorian Registrar of Titles. If an existing mortgage is being refinanced, the discharge and the new registration need to happen together at settlement. Ask for the current payout figure in writing, and ask the State Revenue Office Victoria about any land tax position if the security is not your home.