Bond Repayment & Transfer Duty Calculator

A worked example

With the calculator’s starting values (property price: 1500000 R; deposit: 150000 R; interest rate: 11.75 % p.a.; loan term: 20 years), it returns:

• Monthly repayment: R 14 630 (on a R 1 350 000 loan over 20 years)
• SARS transfer duty: R 8 700 (2025/26 brackets)
• Total interest over term: R 2 161 211 (20 years)
• Total repaid: R 3 511 211 (principal + interest)

How the repayment is calculated

The calculator uses the standard amortisation formula: the loan is the price less the deposit, the interest rate is divided into monthly periods, and the repayment is the fixed monthly amount that clears the loan over the term. Early in the term most of each payment is interest; the share that reduces the capital grows each year. Paying even a small amount extra each month shortens the term and cuts the total interest noticeably.

Transfer duty and when it applies

Transfer duty is a tax paid to SARS on the transfer of property, calculated on the purchase price using sliding-scale brackets. Under the 2025/26 brackets, no duty is payable on a property up to R1,210,000. If you buy a new property from a VAT-registered developer, VAT is included in the price and no transfer duty is payable on that transaction.

Other costs of buying

• Transfer attorney fees for registering the property in your name
• Bond registration attorney fees for registering the loan
• Deeds Office fees for both registrations
• The bank's initiation fee and a monthly service fee on the loan
• Rates clearance and any levy clearance in a sectional-title scheme, usually paid by the seller but worth checking

Financing a new build

A building loan works differently from a purchase bond. The bank approves the full amount against the plans and building contract, then pays the builder in stages after its inspector checks progress. You pay interest only on the amount drawn so far, so repayments rise as the house goes up. Banks usually want approved plans, a fixed-price contract with an NHBRC-registered builder and proof of NHBRC enrolment before the first payment.

On affordability, banks look at your income and expenses rather than a fixed rule, but repayments much above a third of gross income are hard to get approved. Use this calculator to test the repayment at a rate one or two percentage points higher than today's, so a rise in interest rates does not catch you out.