WHERE IS YOUR TITLE DEED (DEED OF TRANSFER)?
Category Property News
WHERE IS YOUR TITLE DEED (DEED OF TRANSFER)?
If you own property, and whether or not you have thoughts of selling in the near future, this is a great time to confirm that you know where your original title deed is. If you can't find it ask your lawyer for help.
As from the 25th February 2019 it is now a lengthy and costly exercise to get hold of a new title deed in South Africa.
The Department of Rural Development and Land Reform announced changes to Regulation 68 of the Deeds Registries Act as published in the government Gazette 42186 on 25 January 2019. Regulation 68 sets out the application process for obtaining original title deed or mortgage bond documents that have been lost or destroyed.
Previously, when a homeowner lost their Title Deed their lawyer could simply make a written application (accompanied with an affidavit) to the Registrar of Deeds to get a new one.
As from 25th February 2019, the amended rule makes the process significantly more complicated which is costly and time consuming. For sellers this could delay house transfers and incur additional unforeseen costs.
The new process is as follows:
1. Your affidavit has to be attested by a Notary Public. A Notary Public is a specialised attorney who notarises documents in a formal recording and certification process. A notarised document carries more weight than an affidavit signed before a Commissioner of Oaths.
2. The application must be advertised in an ordinary issue of the Government Gazette.
3. Copies of the deed must be left open for inspection in the deeds registry for a period of two weeks after the date of publication of the notice. During this period any person may object to the issuing of the new deed.
The purpose behind the new regulations and the details and sequence of the new procedural requirements still need to be clarified. If you do not have a copy of your title deed and are wishing to sell, you can be assured that the regulations will bring about a longer administrative process potentially resulting in significant delays to the property transaction.
Where your Title Deed may be...
- If you paid cash for your home, you as the homeowner of the property should be in possession of the original title deed. In certain instances, the attorney who attended to the transfer of the property may well hold the title deed in 'safe Keeping'.
- If you have a bond on the property, the bank will hold the title deed.
Author: Helen Ward