The conveyancing process ensures that a person, company, close corporation, or trust becomes the registered and lawful owner of immovable property, and that this ownership cannot be challenged. It also includes the registration process for mortgage bonds. A conveyancer is a licenced attorney who has passed the necessary conveyancing exams and been admitted as a conveyancer by the High Court of South Africa. By law, only a conveyancer may register transfers of fixed property. This is required to protect the diverse interests of the parties involved in the transaction and maintain a high standard of land registration. At Lowe & Petersen Attorneys, we have a conveyancing expert who can assist you with all your needs.
The seller typically appoints a conveyancer to handle the transfer of fixed property, although this, along with other terms of a sale agreement, is subject to negotiation. After the buyer and seller of the immovable property have signed an offer to purchase, an attorney must be appointed to handle the registration of the property in the buyer's name. The seller transfers property ownership to the purchaser by registering a deed of transfer at one of the eleven deeds offices in the Republic of South Africa, which is a department of the Department of Rural Development and Land Reform.
Upon registration, the deed of the transfer becomes the owner's title deed and serves as evidence that he or she is the property owner. In the deeds office, only conveyancers are qualified to handle the transfer and registration of properties.
As the transaction's driving force, the conveyancing attorney will oversee each step of the process. Importantly, the conveyancing attorney will handle all financial aspects of the transaction and ensure that the seller receives the proceeds of the sale of the property as soon as possible after registration at the deeds office.
