WHAT / WHO IS A CONVEYANCER?
In short, a conveyancer is an admitted attorney who has passed the conveyancing exam and been admitted in the High Court as a conveyancer. The powers granted to a conveyancer include the ability to see to the registration or transfer of immovable property from one person/entity to another and similarly the registration of a mortgage bond over immovable property. This is a relatively complex process which can only take place in the Deeds Registry in front of the Registrar of Deeds.
South Africa prides itself in having one of the most reliable deeds registries in the world and the standards set to become a conveyancer are extremely high, ensuring the professionalism demanded by the industry remains intact.
WHO PAYS THE COSTS INVOLVED?
The following costs are carried by the relevant parties to the transaction:
- Transfer Duty imposed by SARS: the purchaser
- Municipal rates and taxes clearance: the seller
- Beetle, gas, electrical and plumbing certificates: the seller
- Transfer fees and costs of the conveyancer: the purchaser
- Deeds office fees: the purchaser
- Cancelling of existing bond: the seller
- Estate agent commission: the seller
Remember, if you are obtaining a bond as a purchaser, those costs need to be added to your expenses.
WHO APPOINTS THE ATTORNEY?
It is the prerogative of the seller to determine which conveyancer will see to the transfer of his/her property. Often the estate agent will make a recommendation to the seller.
WHAT ARE THE COSTS INVOLVED?
The Law Society prescribes the transfer and bond registration fees for conveyancers. The costs are determined by the status of the parties (VAT registered or not) and the selling price of the property. The costs are calculated using a sliding scale method. Contact us for an obligation free quote.
HOW LONG DOES THE TRANSFER PROCESS TAKE?
Once you have a validly signed offer to purchase (“OTP”) and have sent this to your transferring attorney, together with all necessary FICA documentation, he/she will perform a deeds search, obtain cancellation figures if bonded, request a copy of the original title deed (normally from the banks), then draft the transfer documentation, arrange for signature, obtain SARS receipt and Municipal clearance, arrange for electrical, gas, plumbing and beetle certification (if this has not been done yet) and once all of this has been completed, lodge the deeds at the Deeds Registry for registration. Registration normally takes approximately 2 weeks. You can expect to wait anything from 1 to 2 and a half months for the transfer process to be completed. If the transfer is from a deceased estate the process will take longer, depending on whether the property was bequeathed or sold out of the estate.
SWIFT, EFFECTIVE RESULTS.