South Africa has one of the most sophisticated and accurate systems of property registration in the world.
All property information records are kept at the Surveyor General’s Office in the form of an SG diagram that details the exact location and extent of the property.
South Africa has one of the most sophisticated and accurate systems of property registration in the world.
A Title Deed is assigned to every property. It records all limitations on transferability and use of the property such as bonds and servitudes and is held by the Deeds Office.
An Estate Agent or the public can call for this information if required.
Most property in SA is owned on the basis of Freehold Title or Sectional Title. Freehold Title confers full title to the land and improvements on the land and Sectional Title confers full title of the demarcated Section of a building.
Your quick guide to the property transfer process
Most property sales in South Africa are handled by registered Estate Agents who will assist in preparing the Offer to Purchase and will shepherd the progress of the transfer and registration process. It is also legal for owners to buy and sell property privately.
How it Happens – Step by Step
- Once a purchase decision has been made, an Offer to Purchase will be signed by the purchaser. Who can sign an offer to purchase?
- The signed Offer to Purchase will be submitted to the seller – the South African law does not recognise verbal agreements in respect of sale and purchase of immovable property.
- A 10% deposit is generally required by the seller within 7 days of signature of Offer to Purchase.
- Once it is signed by the Seller, it becomes a Deed of Sale but it may be subject to Suspensive Conditions like raising a mortgage bond – when the suspensive conditions have been met, the contact is binding.
- The Deed of Sale is given to a Conveyancer, who ensures that the financial arrangements are secure. The Conveyancer then prepares the documentation required to submit the transaction to the Deeds Office to effect transfer. He/she will then call for a Municipal Clearance Certificate for rates and taxes from the Municipality.
- Before the documents can be submitted to the Deeds Office, the purchaser will be required to pay the Transfer Duty and the Registration Costs.
- A Tax Clearance Certificate in respect of the Seller is required from the South African Revenue Service before documents can be submitted to the Deeds Office.
- Generally, a bank guarantee or a cash deposit for the balance of the purchase price is required to be made into the Conveyancer’s Trust account at the time agreed in the Offer to Purchase.
- Should a mortgage bond be registered over a property, a Bond Attorney is appointed to cancel the bond registration.
- Property can be registered in the names of multiple individuals or in Companies and Trusts. Advice from a qualified advisor should be obtained as to the best solution for your personal situation – also see Who can sign an offer to purchase.
- The registration of transfer process usually takes about two to three months to complete and the Agent or Conveyancer should keep you informed of the progress.
Who can sign an offer to purchase?
In the case of couples married in Community of Property, both spouses are required to sign. In the case of a person signing on behalf of a Trust or a Company, a resolution authorising the individual to sign on behalf of the Trust or Company is required.
Should a purchaser wish to form a new Company or Close Corporation to be the transferee, he will have to sign the Offer to Purchase on behalf of the legal entity to be formed. Once the Company/Close Corporation has been formed, the directors will have to ratify the Deed of Sale.
Please note that it is not possible to sign an Offer to Purchase on behalf of a Trust to be formed. The Trust must be in existence with a Letter of Authority from the Master of the High Court before it can purchase, or make an offer to purchase, a property
If a purchaser wants to nominate another person as the transferee, the name and address of the nominee must be provided in writing on the same calendar day that the sale was entered into, i.e, by midnight on the date of sale. Should the nomination only occur on the next day, double transfer duty will be payable.
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