What it costs to buy in Camps Bay
Key takeaways
- At the SARS rates from 1 April 2026, transfer duty is R541,856 on R6,950,000, R5,361,156 on R45,000,000 and R7,961,026 on R64,999,000.
- Above R13,310,000 each extra rand carries 13% duty, so the share paid rises from 7.80% to 12.25% across our three duty prices.
- Our R39,590,000 house is listed with VAT included, and SARS says a property sale carries VAT or transfer duty, never both.
- Conveyancing fees are a negotiable Law Society guideline before 15% VAT, and bank fees and clearance costs are not shown.
Transfer duty is the biggest cost on three of our four Camps Bay homes for sale: R541,856 on R6,950,000, R5,361,156 on R45,000,000 and R7,961,026 on R64,999,000, at the SARS rates from 1 April 2026. Who the seller is decides it. Our R39,590,000 house is listed with VAT included, and SARS says a property sale carries VAT or transfer duty but not both, so we show no duty for that one.
The SARS rates we used
SARS publishes one table for transfers from 1 April 2026 and notes no changes from the year before1. This is the table as at 16 October 2026.
| Value of the property | Transfer duty |
|---|---|
| R1 to R1,210,000 | 0% |
| R1,210,001 to R1,663,800 | 3% of the value above R1,210,000 |
| R1,663,801 to R2,329,300 | R13,614 plus 6% of the value above R1,663,800 |
| R2,329,301 to R2,994,800 | R53,544 plus 8% of the value above R2,329,300 |
| R2,994,801 to R13,310,000 | R106,784 plus 11% of the value above R2,994,800 |
| R13,310,001 and above | R1,241,456 plus 13% of the value above R13,310,000 |
SARS's page on trust tariffs says that since 23 February 2011 the normal rate applies, with no distinction between natural and non-natural persons2, so a person, a company and a trust read the same table.
Four prices, four cost tables
Each table adds the transfer duty, the Law Society's guideline conveyancing fee, 15% VAT on that fee and two Deeds Office fees. Amounts are rounded to the nearest rand. We worked out duty for the other three homes because their listing summaries do not mention VAT; ask us to confirm the seller's VAT status for any home.
One-bedroom apartment, R6,950,000
This is listing 117075226. The guideline uses the same fee scale for a sectional title unit as for a house4.
| Cost | Amount |
|---|---|
| Transfer duty | R541,856 |
| Conveyancing fee, guideline, before VAT | R79,355 |
| VAT at 15% on that fee | R11,903 |
| Deeds Office transfer fee | R3,480 |
| Deeds Office lodgement fee | R52 |
| Total of these five | R636,646 |
Five-bedroom house, R39,590,000
This is listing 116322317. Its description opens by saying the price includes VAT and that there are no transfer costs.
| Cost | Amount |
|---|---|
| Transfer duty | None shown |
| Conveyancing fee, guideline, before VAT | R255,575 |
| VAT at 15% on that fee | R38,336 |
| Deeds Office transfer fee | R7,751 |
| Deeds Office lodgement fee | R52 |
| Total of these four | R301,714 |
Four-bedroom house, R45,000,000
This is listing 117573982.
| Cost | Amount |
|---|---|
| Transfer duty | R5,361,156 |
| Conveyancing fee, guideline, before VAT | R282,275 |
| VAT at 15% on that fee | R42,341 |
| Deeds Office transfer fee | R7,751 |
| Deeds Office lodgement fee | R52 |
| Total of these five | R5,693,575 |
Six-bedroom house, R64,999,000
This is listing 114749038.
| Cost | Amount |
|---|---|
| Transfer duty | R7,961,026 |
| Conveyancing fee, guideline, before VAT | R389,075 |
| VAT at 15% on that fee | R58,361 |
| Deeds Office transfer fee | R7,751 |
| Deeds Office lodgement fee | R52 |
| Total of these five | R8,416,265 |
Why the share keeps rising
Above R13,310,000 every extra rand carries 13% duty. At R13,310,000 the duty is R1,241,456, and every further R1,000,000 adds R130,000, so the share of the price paid as duty climbs towards 13%.
| Price | Duty (share of price) |
|---|---|
| R6,950,000 | R541,856 (7.80%) |
| R45,000,000 | R5,361,156 (11.91%) |
| R64,999,000 | R7,961,026 (12.25%) |
The conveyancing fee is a guideline
The Law Society of South Africa's fee guideline, effective 1 July 2026, says fees are negotiable, are not minimum or maximum fees and are net of VAT4. For a transfer above R5,000,000 it recommends R68,675 for the first R5,000,000 plus R5,340 for each R1,000,000 or part of it above that. The base fee leaves some work out, such as the paperwork under the Financial Intelligence Centre Act, for which it suggests R375 for every natural person involved, to be agreed in advance.
Registering a bond
A bond adds a second registration. The guideline applies the same scale to the amount of the bond, and the Deeds Office has its own scale for the bond capital6. These three bond sizes are examples, not advice. For monthly repayments, use our bond calculator.
| Bond and cost | Amount |
|---|---|
| R2,000,000 bond, conveyancer with VAT | R42,406 |
| R2,000,000 bond, Deeds Office | R1,790 |
| R5,000,000 bond, conveyancer with VAT | R78,976 |
| R5,000,000 bond, Deeds Office | R2,974 |
| R10,000,000 bond, conveyancer with VAT | R109,681 |
| R10,000,000 bond, Deeds Office | R4,120 |
The conveyancer rows are the guideline fee on the bond amount with 15% VAT. The Deeds Office rows are its fee for that bond size from 1 April 2026 (R1,738, R2,922 and R4,068) plus its R52 lodgement fee for the deed.
What these tables leave out
To ask about any of these homes, message us with the listing reference.
Sources
- Transfer duty rates, South African Revenue Service (accessed 16 October 2026)
- Transfer duty: tariffs for trusts, South African Revenue Service (accessed 16 October 2026)
- FAQ: Can the sale of a property be subject to both VAT and Transfer Duty?, South African Revenue Service (accessed 16 October 2026)
- Guideline of fees: conveyancing, effective 1 July 2026, Law Society of South Africa (accessed 16 October 2026)
- Value-added tax, South African Revenue Service (accessed 16 October 2026)
- Fees schedule, Deeds Registration, Department of Land Reform and Rural Development (accessed 16 October 2026)
