Land Transfer Tax Calculator

What land transfer tax is

A one-time provincial (and in Toronto, also municipal) tax paid by the buyer when property changes hands. It's calculated on marginal tiers — like income tax — so each slice of the price is taxed at its own rate. It's due in cash on closing day; your lawyer handles the paperwork, you supply the money. It cannot be rolled into the mortgage.

How the provinces compare on a $650,000 home

• Toronto: ~$18,950 — provincial and municipal taxes stack; Canada's most expensive market for transfer tax
• BC: ~$11,000 — 1% to $200k, 2% to $2M, 3% to $3M, 5% above $3M on residential property
• Ontario (outside Toronto): ~$9,475
• Montreal: ~$8,350 — tiers indexed annually; higher brackets above $552,300
• Quebec (outside Montreal): ~$7,860 — the "welcome tax" (droits de mutation), before any municipal variations
• Manitoba: ~$10,650 — 2% top tier bites early (above $200k); no first-time buyer rebate
• Nova Scotia / New Brunswick / PEI: ~1–1.5% depending on municipality
• Alberta & Saskatchewan: no transfer tax, only registration fees: roughly $1,300 in Alberta (title plus mortgage) and $1,950 in Saskatchewan

First-time buyer rebates

• Ontario: up to $4,000 — fully covers the tax on homes up to $368,333
• Toronto: up to an additional $4,475
• BC: no tax on the first $500,000 (worth up to $8,000) for qualifying homes up to $835,000, phasing out by $860,000 — a first-time buyer at $650,000 pays about $3,000 instead of $11,000
• PEI: most first-time buyers are exempt entirely

"First-time" is defined strictly: generally neither you nor your spouse/common-law partner can have owned a home anywhere, ever. Your lawyer confirms eligibility and files the rebate at closing.

Where this fits in your closing budget

Transfer tax is usually the largest closing cost but not the only one: add legal fees and disbursements (~$1,500–$2,500), title insurance (~$300–$500), home inspection (~$500), and adjustments for prepaid property tax or utilities. A common rule of thumb is 1.5–2.5% of the price for total closing costs — verify your monthly payment fits with the mortgage calculator and your qualifying ceiling with the stress-test calculator.