Cost of removal will depend on your market. In Canada, our labour costs are high. An "easy" tile removal = $1 per square foot. In Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal those costs are slightly higher...so you can budget $1.50 - $2/sf.

The good thing about paying to have tiles removed = flat floor waiting for a brand new floor to be installed. If you do it yourself, you will need to rent several pieces of equipment, drape all of your walls with plastic and learn how to "sand down" mortar = very dusty = very messy.

Professionals have all the right tools and can do it for a fee. If you hire them to install your new floor, you can get a "total package" for "X" amount of money.