BOUNDARY WARS: WHAT TO DO WITH AN ENCROACHING NEIGHBOUR
“Good fences make good neighbours” (Robert Frost – Mending Wall 1919) When you find out that the fence/wall/house your neighbour is building, or has built, is actually on your land – what can you do about it? No problem of course if you are happy to sell the land in question to your neighbour at […]
SELLING YOUR HOUSE? CHOOSE YOUR OWN CONVEYANCER
For most people, your house is your most important asset. So when you sell it (or any other property for that matter), it is absolutely critical to entrust the process to a conveyancer you can trust to act with both speed and integrity. The conveyancer’s role When you sell property, the conveyancer is the specialist […]
LANDLORDS: CAN YOU SWITCH OFF YOUR DEFAULTING TENANT’S LIGHTS?
Your tenant isn’t paying rent and refuses to move out – can you turn the electricity off? First – commercial or residential? The judgment discussed in this article relates to a commercial occupier and as is noted below, residential occupiers enjoy additional protections to commercial occupants. There will no doubt be much debate in legal […]
RENTING IN A COMPLEX? READ THE RULES!
“….. parties are free to contract as they please. The law permits perfect freedom of contract. Parties are left to make their own agreements, and whatever the agreements are, the law will enforce them provided they contain nothing illegal or immoral or against public policy” (extract from judgment below) Be warned – whether you buy […]
ARE THERE LIMITATIONS ON OWNERSHIP RIGHTS?
It is a recognised principle of property law that ownership does not confer absolute and unlimited entitlement on the owner, but that various limitations exist in the interest of the community and for the benefit of other people. The most important limitation on the owner in the interest of the community as a whole is […]
CO-OWNERSHIP OF LAND
The word “co-ownership” in relation to land means that two or more persons own land simultaneously in undivided shares. A share in land does not represent, and may not be held to represent a defined portion of land. A co-owner who holds a share in land does not hold title to a defined piece of […]
HOME OWNERS ASSOCIATIONS: ARE YOU STILL AT RISK ON INSOLVENCY?
Here’s a scenario that is unfortunately a real risk these days – You are a member of a Home Owners Association (HOA), Your HOA is struggling to recover arrear levies from another homeowner who has fallen into financial difficulty. If the arrears aren’t recovered, you and the other homeowners will have to chip in to […]
CONTRACTS: LEAVE NO SHADOW OF A DOUBT
Contracts should always contain a “non-variation” clause providing that no variation of the agreement is of any force or effect unless it is in writing and is signed by all parties. A recent High Court case resulting from a property dispute shows why. Landlord v Tenant: The restaurant that fell on hard times ….. A […]
STRUGGLING TO EVICT A “COMMERCIAL” OCCUPANT? DON’T STRESS ABOUT PIE
A recent Constitutional Court judgment highlights a fundamental difference in the legal protections afforded to two types of unlawful occupant – Residential occupants: Occupants residing on premises are afforded protection in terms of PIE (The Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act) with its many onerous requirements for eviction. Note that […]
DEVELOPERS: REGISTER OR REGRET!
Residential property developers need to note the recent Constitutional Court judgment confirming that you must register with the NHBRC (National Home Builder’s Registration Council) before you conclude a building contract or commence building – if you don’t (or if you register late) you cannot enforce payment. In fact you commit a criminal offence just by […]