21. Buying Property on Auction

South Africans are not used to buying and selling residential properties using auction sales. A property that is being auctioned usually conjures up pictures in the minds of people of liquidations and insolvencies. In countries like Australia,...

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22. What is a Title Deed?

The owner of Immovable Property is the person in whose name the property is registered in terms of the Deeds Registries Act 47 of 1937. A Title Deed is the owner of immovable property's documentary proof of ownership. Each privately owned property...

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23. Who do I pay my deposit to?

 Depending on what is stipulated in your sale agreement, your deposit is either paid to the estate agency involved or to the Conveyancing attorneys attending to the transfer. Both these professionals should have trust accounts in which your money...

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24. What will my transfer and bond costs be?

Your estate agent and conveyancing attorney should be able to answer this question based on a schedule of bond and transfer costs. The transfer fees depend on the purchase price of the property. Bond costs are calculated on the total loan...

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25. When are the transfer costs due and to whom are they paid?

A few weeks after the sale, when you sign your documents, your conveyancer will request that you pay the transfer costs. The Conveyancing attorney has to pay the transfer duty - the major charge on most transfers - in advance, as well as the...

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26. Will someone contact me to let me know when the property is registered?

A representative from your conveyancer's firm should contact you as soon as the registration has gone through. You will also be given a final statement of the account. Your estate agent may also phone you to confirm registration. The bank will...

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27. The South African land registration system.

Almost all land has been surveyed by a qualified land surveyor which survey is reflected on a surveyor general diagram, which is get in the offers of these surveyor general.  Further to the above all these surveyed land is a registered in the...

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28. Understanding a Usufruct.

A Usufruct is a legal institution in which someone, who is not the owner, is given the right to use and enjoy the profits and advantages of something belonging to another as long as the property is not damaged or altered in any way, for a...

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29. The Definition of a Servitude:

A servitude is a registered right that a person has over the immovable property of another. It allows the holder of the servitude to do something with the other persons property, which would not normally be allowed. An example is the right of...

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30. Suretyship - Explained!

When applying for a home loan with a financial institution, and your income and asset value does not cover the required loan you are applying for, the bank may ask you to get someone to stand as guarantor for your load, meaning that if you do...

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