Legal Articles

The Property Practitioners Regulatory Authority (PPRA) requires that FFCs be renewed every three years by 31 October. Missing this deadline can lead to compliance issues and disrupt your operations. At VDM Attorneys, we understand how time-consuming and frustrating it can be to navigate the renewal process, from paperwork to long queues at the PPRA.

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The obligation for developers to hand over specific documents at the first general meeting is set out in the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act (STSMA) and the Prescribed Management Rules (PMRs). These rules are not optional; they exist to ensure continuity, transparency, and accountability from the outset of the scheme’s life.

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In sectional title schemes, trustees play a crucial role in overseeing the day-to-day management of the scheme on behalf of the body corporate. But what happens when those trustees fail to act in the scheme’s best interests — or worse, cause harm through mismanagement or misconduct?

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Johlene Wasserman, the driving force behind VDM Attorneys' community scheme and compliance division, worked for both the CSOS and the PPRA and understands schemes and their legal complexities. She has positioned herself at the forefront of community scheme and property practitioner compliance, protecting the interests of homeowners, tenants, and trustees alike.

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According to the city, persistent non-payment by property owners has significantly affected its ability to operate efficiently. In response, it has introduced a stricter enforcement mechanism, aimed at recovering debts before a transfer of ownership is finalised.

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In a landmark judgment handed down by the Gauteng Division of the High Court, the court made it clear that bodies corporate may not withhold a levy clearance certificate as a means of enforcing compliance with scheme rules or municipal laws — where all financial obligations to the body corporate have already been met.

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Estate administration can be held up by a wide range of issues — many of which are avoidable with proper foresight. While some delays are due to regulatory backlogs or institutional inefficiencies, many are caused by personal oversights that could have been addressed well in advance. Understanding these obstacles is key to preventing unnecessary hardship for the family members left behind.

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The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Reserve Bank lowered the repo rate by 25 basis points at its May policy meeting, after stalling the rate-cutting cycle in March. This was the fourth rate cut since September last year, with the prime overdraft rate of the commercial banks now standing at 10.75%. Compared to the beginning of 2020 (just before the Covid-19 pandemic), the prime rate is still 75 basis points higher. 

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Transfer duty is often confused with transfer fees, but the two are not the same. While transfer duty is a tax paid to the government, transfer fees refer to the professional legal fees paid to a conveyancing attorney for managing the legal transfer of ownership. Both are payable during the transfer process, but they serve very different purposes. 

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Choosing trustees is one of the most consequential choices you will make when establishing a trust. Trustees are the people—or professionals—who will hold legal control over the assets in your trust and make decisions that directly affect your beneficiaries.

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