News & Updates

SALE AGREEMENTS ARE NOT “UNDER LOCKDOWN”

May 15, 2020

Is your property currently on the market? Or are you waiting for lockdown restrictions to ease before putting your property on the market? Do you feel like there is no chance of a sale taking place during this time? Well, don’t! We can confirm that properties are being sold, despite the limitations which have been placed on the property industry.

Although estate agents are not permitted to return to their offices just yet, many have become extremely resourceful, using a variety of different techniques to close the deal for their clients.  More time to think and the value of a home being top of mind has pushed potential purchasers to sign on the dotted line and secure their dream homes.

Many successful Sale Agreements have been concluded during lockdown, with the initial viewings having taken place prior to lockdown. Other properties are being viewed initially on the various online property platforms such as Private Property and Property24 through photographs and virtual tours and then in-depth video viewings are securing the deal. The market has also seen creativity in special conditions, which allow purchasers to view the property in person within a certain time-frame after the lifting of lockdown.

Conveyancers are Professional Service Providers and have been permitted to return to office under Level 4, albeit under strict health and sanitation guidelines. The City of Cape Town has resumed issuing Rates Clearance Certificates, and SARS is processing transfer duty receipts. Therefore, despite the Deeds Office being slow to open and at a very limited capacity when they are scheduled to do so on 13 May 2020, Sale Agreements can be signed and the transfer process (which will take approximately 3 months on average) can proceed.

With the much publicized drop in the interest rate buying a property has become more achievable than ever and with the value that South African property is presenting at present, we anticipate transactional volumes to increase over the coming months.

What is the difference between an obstacle and an opportunity? Our attitude toward it. Every opportunity has a difficulty, and every difficulty has an opportunity.– J. Sidlow Baxter