What this total includes

The prominent answer adds five components: transfer duty where selected, transfer attorney fees, bond registration attorney fees, VAT on those two entered professional-fee amounts, and the entered deeds-office, postage and other buyer costs. It does not add the property purchase price or deposit. The purpose is to estimate cash needed over and above the purchase consideration.

Attorney fees are not calculated from an invented universal tariff. Conveyancers may use guideline scales, but the actual instruction, transaction complexity, disbursements and firm quote determine the amount. Enter written quotes excluding VAT so the page can apply the current 15% VAT rate to the two professional-fee fields without double counting.

Transfer duty table effective 1 April 2026

No transfer duty is calculated up to R1 210 000. From R1 210 001 to R1 663 800, duty is 3% of the value above R1 210 000. The next band starts with R13 614 plus 6% above R1 663 800. Higher bands use R53 544 plus 8% above R2 329 300, R106 784 plus 11% above R2 994 800, and R1 241 456 plus 13% above R13 310 000.

The thresholds apply to the value used under the Transfer Duty Act, which may not always be a simple headline offer price. Connected-person transactions, donations, exchanges, rights and undervalued consideration can need a different basis. Use the signed agreement and conveyancer’s advice for the amount that must be declared.

Worked R2 million purchase

For a transfer-duty transaction at R2 million, the property falls in the 6% band. Duty is R13 614 plus 6% of R336 200, giving R33 786. With R30 000 transfer attorney fees and R25 000 bond-registration fees, professional fees total R55 000 and VAT on those entries is R8 250.

Adding R2 000 deeds and postage costs plus R3 000 other quoted buyer costs gives an estimated R102 036 above the purchase price. A different bond amount, no bond, extra certificates or a revised attorney quote will change the total even though the statutory duty remains the same for the entered consideration.

Transfer duty and VAT transactions

A property transaction is generally subject to either transfer duty or VAT on the supply, not both on the same transfer. A developer or VAT vendor selling property in the course of an enterprise may quote a VAT-inclusive price. The VAT option in this calculator sets transfer duty to zero; it does not add VAT to or remove VAT from the purchase consideration.

Seller VAT registration alone does not decide every case, and contract wording matters. Do not select the VAT option merely because the property is new. Obtain confirmation from the conveyancer or tax adviser about the supply and whether the advertised price includes VAT.

Transfer and bond registration are separate

The transferring attorney moves ownership into the buyer’s name. If a lender finances the purchase, a bond attorney registers the mortgage bond in favour of the lender. A cancellation attorney may act for the seller’s existing lender. The buyer commonly budgets for transfer and new bond registration, but appointments and responsibility follow the transaction documents.

A cash purchase can have no new bond registration fee, so enter zero in that field. If the lender grants a bond larger or smaller than expected, request an updated registration quote. Do not assume the bond fee is calculated from property price when the registered bond amount differs.

Costs outside the calculator

Home-loan initiation and valuation fees, building insurance, life cover, occupational rent, rates clearance adjustments, levies, inspection reports, moving costs and repairs may sit outside the entered fields. Some are paid before registration, some at registration and some monthly afterwards. A buyer needs both a once-off transfer budget and a sustainable ownership budget.

A deposit is part of purchase funding rather than a transfer cost, but it still affects cash timing. Confirm when trust-account payments are due and verify banking details through an independently known contact because conveyancing-payment fraud can involve convincing email changes.

Timing and quote control

Transfer duty must be declared and paid through the conveyancing process within the applicable time limits. Tax tables can change with a budget, so the result is labelled for the table effective 1 April 2026. An agreement signed or transaction structured around a rate-change date needs professional confirmation of the applicable rule.

Request itemised quotes showing fee, VAT and disbursements. Enter each amount once. A quote that already says “including VAT” must be divided into its fee and VAT components before using an excluding-VAT field, or the page will add VAT twice.

Before relying on the estimate

Check the signed purchase consideration, tax treatment, bond amount and appointed attorneys. Compare the page total with the conveyancer’s pro forma account and ask about any difference. The pro forma account can later be reconciled to actual disbursements and apportionments.

The calculator is useful for early affordability planning, but only the professionals handling the transfer can confirm the payable amounts and timing. Keep a reserve rather than committing every available rand to the lowest estimate.

Shared ownership and entities

Buying with another person does not ordinarily mean applying the threshold separately to each buyer; duty follows the transaction value and legal rules. A company, trust or other entity can also have different financing, governance and tax consequences even where the published transfer-duty bands apply. Enter the full relevant consideration for a planning check and obtain advice on ownership structure before signing. Changing the purchaser later can create delay or additional cost.