Property Purchase Costs Calculator

Many calculators online work out the side costs with a rule of thumb: one percent here, one and a half percent there. That is quick but often off, because notaries and land registries do not charge a percentage, they charge from a fixed fee table. The Property Purchase Costs Calculator therefore uses the real table B of the Court and Notary Fees Act (GNotKG) and the individual fees of its schedule: the double fee for notarising the purchase contract (KV 21100), half a fee each for completion and supervision (KV 22110, 22200), the data for the land registry, the postage flat rate and 19 percent VAT. On top come the land registry fees for the priority notice, the registration as owner and deleting the notice.

The biggest item is almost always the land transfer tax (Grunderwerbsteuer). Each federal state sets its own rate, and the differences are large: Bavaria charges 3.5 percent, Brandenburg, North Rhine-Westphalia, Saarland and Schleswig-Holstein 6.5 percent. Saxony has been at 5.5 percent since 2023, Thuringia at 5.0 percent since 2024, Bremen at 5.5 percent since 1 July 2025. The calculator shows you the rate for your state, the tax for your price and, in one line, how much less it would be in Bavaria. If you like, you see all 16 states in a table.

For estate agents the equal split has applied since December 2020: if you buy a flat or single-family house privately, you pay at most as much commission as the seller (§ 656c and § 656d BGB). The calculator knows this rule. If you enter a higher share than the seller pays, it uses the allowed amount and tells you why. Depending on the region, 2.38 to 3.57 percent per side is common, and negotiating is explicitly allowed.

For the financing you enter your own money plus the interest rate and initial repayment from your bank's offer. The calculator shows the total needed, the loan you need, a rough loan-to-value ratio and the monthly payment. It includes the cost of the land charge (Grundschuld) the bank wants as security, because you pay for that at the notary and the land registry too. A small table shows how much interest and repayment fall due in the first years and what is still open afterwards.

After the notary appointment things continue. The tax office sends you the land transfer tax notice, and the tax is due one month after the notice is received (§ 15 GrEStG). Only once it is paid does the tax office issue the tax clearance certificate, without which the land registry will not register you as owner. And from 1 January after the handover you pay the property tax yourself. The calculator shows you these three dates and, if you like, adds them to your deadline tracker.

If you buy from your parents, children or spouse, no land transfer tax is due (§ 3 GrEStG). And a fitted kitchen or furniture bought along with the home are not part of the property; no land transfer tax is due on their fair value. You can enter both in the calculator.

All figures are guide values for planning and comparing. The real bills come from the notary, the land registry and the tax office, and small expenses can be added depending on the case. The calculator does not replace advice from a notary, bank, lawyer or tax adviser. Everything you type stays in your browser.