WELCOME

Welcome to the Garden Route. Congratulations on your choice to visit this area, which as you may well know, has become one of the prime holiday and residential destinations for locals and foreigners alike. The reasons for this are numerous and include amongst others, a moderate and healthy climate, scenic beauty, a wide choice of leisure activities, excellent medical facilities and a plethora of good restaurants and shops.

COMPANY PROFILE

Our company commenced trading in Knysna in 1987 with two of the 4 original partners still the active proprietors of the business. As many of the buyers were from the Reef even in those days, we approached the then De Huizemark with a view of creating their first franchise outside of Gauteng as that business had been running successfully since 1968 espousing high ethical principals to which we aspire. Along the Garden Route, the Huizemark brand now has offices in Knysna, Brenton on Sea, Sedgefield, Plettenberg Bay and Jeffreys Bay.

We cover all aspects of real estate, from residential (both selling and renting) to commercial, industrial, developments, farms and small holdings, and business broking. In short we offer a broad spectrum of services to cover your every need in the property field. Twenty years of property experience in the area and our professional training and background has kept our name at the forefront of the industry. This has led us to forming an alliance with 4 other leading agencies in the area so that we can guarantee that by using our offices for your property needs, you will have access to virtually all properties which are on the market in Knysna and surrounds.

MISSION STATEMENT

Our mission has always been to provide sincere professional advice to both buyers and sellers alike, achieved through the highest levels of client focussed service excellence.

PROPERTY OWNERSHIP IN SOUTH AFRICA

South Africa has one of the most sophisticated and secure property registration systems in the world. The Deeds Registries Office records faithfully the history of the ownership of all properties, together with all encumbrances affecting the property such as mortgage bonds and servitudes and any other restrictions which may affect the property ownership adversely. Ownership will only pass on registration thereof in the Deeds Registry office and is executed by an appointed Conveyancer who acts for both the buyer and the seller .Because of the stringent laws governing the passing of ownership of property, the conveyancer is unable to pass transfer if obligations of the seller in respect of the property have not been met eg the payment of outstanding bonds or rates. The purchaser is thus protected from claims by any party who may have a claim against a prior owner in respect of the property. Furthermore, the purchase price is only paid to the seller on registration of transfer, but the purchaser will be required to give a bankers guarantee for same prior to transfer.

PURCHASING A PROPERTY

Any contract for the acquisition of property in South Africa must be in writing and signed by both parties. This document usually takes the form of an "Offer to Purchase" and once signed by the seller, becomes a binding agreement of sale and can only be cancelled if any suspensive condition is not met through no fault of either party. Properties are normally bought by parties making use of Estate Agents who have to be registered with the Estate Agents Affairs Board. This means that any money paid to agents as for example, a deposit, is protected as all agents will have Fidelity Fund Certificates to ensure all Trust money. The Agent's duty is to show to potential purchasers all property which the agent, after consultation, feels might appeal to the purchaser. Thereafter, the agent will assist the purchaser in completing the Offer to Purchase and attend to negotiations with the seller on a host of issues arising from an offer, such as finalizing the price, and method of payment thereof, to the date of transfer of ownership, date of occupation (which does not necessarily have to coincide), the assisting of applications for a mortgage bond, if necessary etc. Often the agent will be called upon to give guidance on a host of subjects such as engineering problems related to the property to legal and fiscal implications on property ownership, comparative market analysis and anything else which may affect the property.

TRANSFER OF PROPERTY- THE PROCESS

Once the Offer has been signed and accepted, the Seller will nominate the conveyancer who will draw up all documents to facilitate registration. This will include obtaining a clearance certificate from the local authority that all rates have been paid. Although the seller nominates the conveyancer, the purchaser will pay his fees, together with the Transfer Duty which is an amount set by the Government as a transfer tax. If the selling price includes Value Added Tax (eg if you buy from a developer or registered vendor) no Duty is payable. The buyer will also have to pay for the registration of any Mortgage Bond which he may require. This will be registered simultaneously with the transfer. All existing bonds will also be cancelled simultaneously at the cost of the seller. Payment of the purchase price is normally in the form firstly, of a deposit payable within a short time after the Offer is signed and held in Trust by either the Agent or Conveyancer. The norm is usually 10% and is repayable if any suspense conditions in the Offer are not met timeously. Interest on the deposit will be for the benefit of the purchaser. The balance of the purchase price will be paid on transfer but will have been gauranteed when required as per the Deed of Sale.

FOREIGNERS BUYING PROPERTY IN SOUTH AFRICA

Currently there is no restriction on foreigners buying property in South Africa. Foreigners (Non Residents) are defined as parties whether they be natural or legal entities (a legal entity is a company or close corporation or a trust) whose normal place of residence, domicile, or place of registration is outside the common monetary area of South Africa South Africans who have lived abroad for more than 5 years will be subject to the same restrictions as non residents when it comes to financing the acquisition of property, viz that a financial institution will only grant bonds of up to 50% of the value of the property. There are some formalities if a legal entity acquires property, such the appointment of a local accounting officer and the registration of such entity in South Africa.

CAPITAL GAINS AND THE REPATRIATION OF FUNDS ON SELLING

All funds introduced from abroad to acquire property in South Africa plus profits on resale less Capital Gains Tax can be repatriated provided that the Title Deed of the property is endorsed "Non Resident". This also applies to legal entities provided that they have their relevant securities endorsed "Non Resident". Even loans introduced from abroad to fund the acquisition of property owning legal entities can be repatriated in terms of the original loan approval by the Reserve Bank. Capital Gains Tax is payable by non residents on the disposal of property situated in South Africa. The amount payable is calculated by adding 25% of the gain to any other income sourced in South Africa. For an individual this usually works out at 10% of the gain as the maximum tax rate is 40%. For legal entities, the tax rate is 30%, but a trust's tax rate is 40%. Non residents do not pay Secondary Tax on Companies in respect of dividends paid. An individual who can prove that the property is his primary residence, is exempt from being taxed on the first R1,5m gain. To ensure that the receiver of revenue is covered for the tax payable, some Deeds Registeries offices insist that all purchasers are registered as income tax payers at the time of transfer, and that their tax is up to date at transfer. CGT is only payable on transfer and it is now encumbent on transferring attorneys to retain 5% of the selling price for individuals if the seller is a non resident, 7.5 % for Legal entities and 10% for trusts. Any amount retained in excess of the tax liability will be repaid to the seller.

These are the basic rules governing the acquisition of property in South Africa and any party purchasing property is advised, before embarking on committing him/herself in writing to get professional advice if he/she is not sure of the consequences of their proposed actions.