Ownership, use and transfer of property 

Property Law

Conveyancing

Conveyancing is the legal process of transferring ownership of a property from one person or entity to another. It involves various steps and legal documents that must be completed to ensure the transfer is legally binding and properly recorded. 

It also involves the registration of new bonds and the cancellation of existing bonds to ensure that the rights of a lender (such as a bank) are protected.  

The transfer process can be complex and time-consuming, so it is essential to have a qualified conveyancer guide you through the process and ensure that everything is done correctly. 

Our conveyancing team can help navigate this complex process from the start, from the receipt and review of the sale agreement, all the way to the finish at registration of the transfer in the Deed Office. 

Along the way, you will get a report every week allowing you to track the progress of your transfer and personal service since our conveyancer is only a phone call away. 

Our conveyancing team assists with three main services

“Buy land, they are not making it anymore.”

Mark Twain

Property Transfers

The legal process of transferring ownership of a property from one person or entity to another. This can occur through a sale, inheritance, donation or a court order.

The transfer process typically involves the following steps

  1. Sale Agreement: most transfers are the result of a sale, where the buyer and seller will have agreed on the terms of the sale, such as the purchase price and which attorney firm will conduct the transfer. Often the negotiation of the purchase price, and the drafting and signing of the agreement will be facilitated by an estate agent instructed by the seller. 
  2. Conducting of searches, drafting and signing of transfer documents: this is where Thorpe & Hands can assist. If the buyer and seller have agreed to instruct us, then the sale agreement will be sent to us (usually by the estate agent). We then request legal information about the property from the Deeds Office. We will also attend to the drafting of the transfer document. These will include the new title deed (“deed of transfer”), power of attorney, and other relevant documents for the Deeds Office. The buyer and seller will then need to sign the transfer documents with us once the documents are ready.
  3. Obtaining certificates: by law the Deeds Office cannot register the change of ownership until the South African Revenue Service (SARS) has issued a receipt stating that the transfer duty has been paid (“Transfer Duty Receipt”) and the local municipality has issued a certificate stating that rates due for the property have been paid three months in advance (“Rate Clearance Certificate” or “RCC”). If the property is a sectional title, we apply to the body corporate (or the managing agent if there is one) for a certificate stating that levies due for the property have been paid in advance for the property (“Levy Clearance Certificate” or “LCC”). Electrical, entomologist, gas and electrical fence certificates will often have to be provided by the seller as a term of the sale agreement.
  4. Registration of transfer: the transfer documents must be lodged and registered at the Deeds Office. This involves submitting the documents to be checked by the Deeds Office and paying the necessary registration fees. Sometimes it can take up to three months to get to this stage but once the transfer documents have been lodged in the Deeds Office it will only take between 10-15 days to register. 

The transfer process can be complex and time-consuming, so it is essential to have a qualified conveyancer guide you through the process and ensure that everything is done correctly. 

Our conveyancing team can help navigate this complex process from the start, from the receipt and review of the sale agreement, all the way to the finish at registration of the transfer in the Deed Office. 

Along the way, you will get a report every week allowing you to track the progress of your transfer and personal service since our conveyancer is only a phone call away. 

Bond registrations

The process of registering a mortgage bond, a loan is taken out to purchase a property, over the property in the Deeds Office. This provides the lender (such as a bank) with a form of security.

Only certain attorney firms are allowed to register bonds on behalf of a bank (this is called being on the bank’s “panel” or a “panel attorney”) as the banks have performance targets that an attorney firm must adhere to. 

Thorpe & Hands can register bonds on behalf of Nedbank and Standard Bank where the buyer has been granted a loan by either bank. 

We have been the panel for these banks for many years and our experienced team is best placed to ensure that the requirements of the bank are carried out timeously.

Bond cancellations

The process of cancelling or terminating a mortgage bond on a property. It occurs when a property owner pays off the outstanding balance of their mortgage bond or sells the property and the buyer pays off the outstanding mortgage bond.

Similar to bond registrations, only certain attorney firms are allowed to cancel bonds on behalf of a bank.

Thorpe & Hands can cancel bonds on behalf of Standard Bank where the seller has paid off the bond or sold the property.

“Without property rights, no other rights are possible.”

Ayn Rand

Sectional Title Law

A sectional title property refers to a type of property ownership in which an individual owns a “unit” in a property (usually a building). This type of property ownership is common in multi-unit residential complexes such as apartment buildings, townhouses, and gated communities.

The owner’s unit is made up of two components: the individual physical space occupied by the owner (the “section”), and an undivided share in the “common property”, the building structure and common areas such as the swimming pool, gardens, and parking areas. The undivided share effectively makes all unit owners joint owners of the common property.

Owners pay levies to a body corporate, which is responsible for the management and maintenance of the common areas. The levies are calculated on the square meterage of the owner’s section and expressed as a percentage of the total square meterage of the whole property. This calculation is called the “participation quota” and determines the amount of money the unit owner has to pay towards the maintenance of the common property. 

Sectional title ownership provides benefits such as shared maintenance costs, security, and amenities, but it also requires owners to comply with the rules set out by the body corporate. These rules may include restrictions on renovations, pet ownership, and noise levels, among others.