BUYER COSTS - ONCE OFF

Transfer Duty

This is a government Tax and is pre-determined with each tax budget year.
 
Calculated as Follows :
Property Value R0 – R500,000 Nil
Property Value R500,000 – R1000,000 5% of the amount in excess of R500,000
Property Value R1000,000 plus 8% of the amount in excess of R1000,000
Attorney Property Transfer Fees

Many of the costs associated with buying a property are non-negotiable, but conveyancing fees can be negotiated with the attorney you appoint. All conveyancers work on a sliding scale of fees – the higher the value of your property, the higher the fee. Below is a rough table to give you an idea of your costs, including VAT, but make sure your agent or conveyancer gives you an estimate upfront, preferably prior to appointment.

Purchase Price Fees Purchase Price Fees
Below R90,000 3648.00 R1000,000 14250.00
R200,000 5472.00 R1500,000 17100.00
R400,000 7296.00 R2000,000 19950.00
R600,000 9690.00 R2500,000 22800.00
R800,000 11970.00 R3000,000 27360.00

Attorney Bond Registration Fees

The attorney bond registration fees can also be negotiated with the attorney you appoint. All conveyancers work on a sliding scale of fees – the higher the value of your property, the higher the fee. Below is a rough table to give you an idea of your costs, including VAT, but make sure your agent or conveyancer gives you an estimate, upfront, preferably prior to appointment.

Purchase Price Fees Purchase Price Fees
Up to R100,000 2850.00 R1000,000 10716.00
R200,000 3420.00 R1500,000 12996.00
R400,000 5244.00 R2000,000 15276.00
R600,000 7068.00 R2500,000 17556.00
R800,000 8892.00 R3000,000 19836.00

Deeds Office Fees

The Deeds Office charges a fee for the work they undertake and you will have to have the cash available for this. They will charge you once for registering your property in your name and again for registering the bond against that property.
 
Below are tables of their costs, based on the value of the property

Property Registration Fee Bond Registration Fee
Property Value Fee Bond Value Fee
R0 – R159,000 70.00 R0 – R159,000 260.00
R160,000 – R309,000 300.00 R160,000 – R309,000 300.00
R310,000 – R509,000 400.00 R310,000 – R509,000 400.00
R510,000 – R1099,000 500.00 R510,000 – R1099,000 500.00
R1100,000 – R2099,000 600.00 R1100,000 – R2099,000 650.00
R2100,000 – R3099,000 800.00 R2100,000 plus 1000.00
R3100,000 plus 1000.00    

Pro Rata Rates

From the settlement date, you are responsible for all the council, water rates and levies on a property. You may have to reimburse the previous owner on a pro rata basis for any payments they have already made. Your agent or solicitor will work these out for you. Essentially, the rate must be paid in full until end of June and you must pay your portion thereof – If you for example will be taking owernership of the property ion the first of May, you will be responsible for two of the twelve months.

To view an Extract of the Municipal Rates Policy go here
To Download the Municipal Rates Info Sheet go here
 
Bond Cancellation Fees

If you have an existing bond on another home that is being sold, their will be bond cancellation fees to pay, if you do not give sufficient notice. This is roughly R850.00. This will normally be deducted directly by the conveyancer from the proceeds of your sale and paid over. See the page on the fees charged by the different backs here.
 
Appraiser Fees

If you appoint an appraiser you will obviously have to incur this cost. The bank however will appoint an appraiser of their own to ensure that the value of the house is correct and you will have to pay for this. This will be approximately R800.00. They might request payment of this and other sundry fees upfront but normally add these to your bond account.
 
Bond Initiation Costs

Most banks are charging a fee for initiating the bond and this can vary from R300 to R600. When applying or working through your bond originator, make sure you find out. There are instances, where they might want this payment upfront but in most instances, this will simply get added to your bond account
 
House Inspections

If you are having a professional huose inspection done, whether part of the suspensive conditions of the contract or not, you will have to have this money ready. In all probability, the inspection company will not release the report until paid. This will be anything from R1000 to R3000

Other Inspections

You might have decided to do a pest or borer beetle report at your own cost - these will cost you around R800 each.
 

Sundry Conveyancing Costs

If you have lost your title deed, your attorneys will obtain a copy for you – for a fee of around R550. If you required a title search to satisfy yourself as to who owns the property and what restrictions and conditions are in the title deed – you will pay a fee of around R550.00. If the propert boundaries were obscure and you wanted to do a survey to make sure of exactly where the boundary lays – look to paying around R500 for a Survey.
 
Conveyancing Admin Costs

Posts and Petties 456.00 These are estimated costs based on normal fees charged historically by conveyancers. They might differ slightly. NOTE. These costs will be charged once for property registration and once for bond registration.
Document Generation Fee 114.00
Aktex Fee 91.20
Bond Electronic Link Fee 100.00 A once off fee for the Bond Registration

Sectional Title Additional Costs

1) Your attorney will have to obtain a Levy Clearance Certificate at a cost of R550.
2) They will also obtain on Insurance Clearance Certificate – cost R550
3) If there is an exclusive use section, e.g. a garage, then ad R1900.00 to the costs.

NB - These are estimates based on current tables and might have changed in the interim. Please contact us about obtaining a detailed quote from a Conveyancer


For more detailed information on Finance issues go here
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