Earn respect from your clients.

An interesting read:

http://www.realestateweb.co.za/realestateweb/view/realestateweb/en/page228?oid=8030&sn=Detail

Can you afford it?

BUYER TIPS

Applying for a Home Loan

LIST OF INFO NEEDED

Copy of ID (If you are married IN Community of Property you need both spouses ID’s)
Marriage Certificate
Offer to Purchase
Employment Details

Proof of income:
Salaried earner – copy of latest payslip
Salaried earner (basic & Commission) – 6 months payslips -
Commission only – 6 months payslips & 6 months bank statements
Self Employed – 6 months personal bank statements. Letter from the auditor to confirm monthly drawings and audited set of financial statements.
3 months Bank Statements.
A list of ASSETS and LIABILITIES
Monthly Expenses and Income
Not that your relationship with the tax man is any of their business the banks may ask for latest SARS assessment
If property is under sectional title, copy of the financials from the body corporate and name of the managing agent
The National Credit Act which came into effect on 1 June 2007 has forced the financial institutions to be more meticulous when assessing your bond application. They have to make 100% sure that you can afford to pay the bond every month. If it can be proved that the bank has "recklessly" granted you a bond the bank may be liable and could face a fine from the Credit Regulator.

How much do you qualify for?:
The Banks base their bond approvals on your TOTAL disposable income. This means they deduct tax and all monthly expenses (including groceries etc) from your salary and whatever is left is your DISPOSABLE income.

If you have R10000 left after all deductions per month you may qualify for a bond of about R950000. Remember, you can also apply for a bond jointly and thereby qualify for a larger bond amount.

Further Education and Training Certificate (FETC): Real Estate (NQF 4)

The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has released (draft) regulations that require all estate agents and principals to have acquired a real estate qualification by December 2011. Agents will be required to earn the Further Education and Training Certificate (FETC): Real Estate (NQF 4) and the principals will be required to earn the NQF 5 Real Estate Certificate in . Agents and principals with relevant working experience may earn their qualification through RPL - contact me for a cost-effective solution. proplib@tiscali.co.za

SAPOA’S 40th Convention

Welcome message from the SAPOA CEO Mr Neil Gopal and the Convention Chairman Mrs Nicole Baumgarten
SAPOA’S 40th Convention will get under way in the Cape Town International Convention Centre from Thursday 29 to 30 May 2008. We anticipate that it will be bigger, better and busier than its predecessors.
South Africa is poised on a new reality, with legislation, leadership and globalisation taking us further into “the new”. We need to gear up, lead and embrace the new environment for growth, and shift our thinking to make it happen.
An exciting line up of local property gurus, as well as a few leading international real estate experts, will discuss and debate matters where powerful leadership is vital if the South African property fraternity is to embrace the challenges that lie ahead. Issues such as the foreign land ownership debate, delivery and capacity at government levels, safer cities and the harnessing of the property sector in the interests of economic development are just some of the subjects that will be explored and debated.
We trust that the 2008 Convention will take into account participants’ wishes, viz a viz the 2007 Convention survey: There will be more local speakers, increased platforms for debate, less powerpoint presentations, and generous time will be built into the programme for networking. Everything possible will be done to ensure that participants will be afforded opportunities to exchange ideas and practical solutions on the sidelines of the speakers’ programme itself.
As in the past, the 2008 Convention will host the SAPOA Awards for Excellence in Property Development and a record number of entries is again expected.
Red line your diary for the 28th - 30th May 2008.

Attention: All Residential Estate Agents

I received this in my in-basket the other day. If you have made money from your dealings with this organisation - write us a comment below!

"Attention All Residential Estate Agents
If you come across a commercial or industrial property for sale, land for development or any seller or buyer for non-residential property, or businesses for sale, then this email is of critical importance to you!
Occasionally in your business dealings, a client will mention that he wants to buy or sell a business, some industrial land etc – a deal which neither you nor anyone in your office is equipped to handle. This is where the Broker Exchange comes into the picture.
By publishing the property through the Broker Exchange you can now receive 40% of the commission for the sale, yet all the detail is handled by those experienced in those processes.
We shall help you with any documentation you require and coach you in its use – all very simple I assure you.
The next step is that you register with us – easy enough as all you need to do is send us an email with your company and personal details. We’ll send you the operating procedures (very simple!) and samples of the most common documents you may require to submit buyers or sellers to the Broker Exchange.
So don’t delay – do it today!
Looking forward to hearing from you.

Kindest regards, Mark RothschildBROKERS EXCHANGEhttp://us.mc552.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=zaboykie@888dragon.com P.O. Box 3773, Dainfern 2055, South AfricaTel: 082 574 6688Fax: 0866 187 011"

Service with a smile - keep in contact

www.ServiceWithaSmile.co.za

I have not used this service - if you have, write a comment here.

Self regulation?

The business Business Times website carried the article: RE/Max calls for industry overhaul

According to an article by Don Robertson in the SOWETAN on 22 April 2008 RE/Max, has called for the deregulation of the Estate Agency Affairs Board and for the industry to be allowed to regulate itself.

It claims the body is incompetent, fails to return telephone calls, often fails to issue fidelity certificates or does not issue them in time. Estate agents need a fidelity fund certificate to be able to claim commission on the sale of a property. Has this been your experience? Comment below.

About 80000 estate agents were registered with the board last year. It is reported that Jeanne van Jaarsveldt, marketing and financial director of RE/Max, believes that with residential property price growth slowing, the number of agents will drop to about 35000 in time.
What are your views on this?

Van Jaarsveldt also said the consumer and industry interests would be better served if the board was deregulated and the industry could regulate itself.
Have you any views?

Eskel Jawitz, chairman of Jawitz Properties, whose son Herschel was recently appointed vice-chairman of the board, is reported to have said he doubted the board would be deregulated as there is nothing else to replace it. He also admitted, though, that the board was not functioning as it should, but the estate profession should be proactive and try and effect change from within. He also said the call to “unbundle” the board was focussing only on the negatives, but ignoring all the positives that have come about since the board came into operation such as the Code of Conduct and educational standards.

It is also reported that Ken Ralph, vice-president of the Institute of Estate Agents said the matter was “delicate and difficult”.

For Sale: One bedroomed flat in Florida - Lake View

Priced to sell. R 299 000
http://www.privateproperty.co.za/

http://www.privateproperty.co.za/search/details_new.asp?refpro=F0252_2_511_15_1_FLORIDA%201%20bedrooms,%201%20bathrooms%20apartment%20%20for%20sale

The Property Charter

Property Charter


If you need any information on the property charter you may find the following site useful: www.propertycharter.co.za

This website gives detailed information about transformation within the property sector and, in particular, to the implementation of the property sector charter. It contains explanations of how the Charter works on a practical level.

There is in existence a Property Sector Charter Council, the composition of which is listed on the above website. There is also a copy of the Constitution of the Council on the website.

It must be kept in mind that the property sector charter has been gazetted in terms of section 12 of the BEE Act, and is thus an expression of commitment to transformation by the property sector. The property sector charter is not, however, a binding document.

Companies who are committed to complying with the goals set in the charter often call in an independent ratings agency to determine their extent of compliance. Once a ratings agency has rated the transformation in a company it will issue a certificate reflecting the extent of compliance. There is no formal reporting requirement for companies in the property sector at the moment. Listed companies may, however, publish information as to the extent of compliance on their websites and in their annual reports.

As stated above, because the property sector charter has been published in terms of section 12 it is not a set of binding requirements. However, whether the goals set out in the charter have been attained may be relevant, for example, where a tender is made for work from the state. The panel evaluating the tender will ask questions regarding transformation and the answers to these questions are relevant in determining who the tender will be awarded to.

(This text is adapted from an email received by Charl Heydenrych from Nikki Stein, a candidate attorney at Bowman Gilfillan, in Johannesburg - 17 April 2008)

Obtain your FETC:Real Estate!

Contact:
Charl Heydenrych
082 637 3710
011 672 9019
proplib@tiscali.co.za

Property, whose property? It has been expropriated!

Free Market Foundation director, Temba Nolutshungu, recently commented to Realestateweb on the Expropriation Bill that has now been introduced into Parliament. A report on his comments is reproduced below as well as links to view the full article and to download the Bill.

The Bill is available at http://www.info.gov.za/gazette/bills/2008/b3-08.pdf

It is no longer a draft Bill but a full-blown Bill that has been introduced into Parliament, that is why the info has to change.

Eustace Davie
Director
Free Market Foundation
Tel: 011 884 0270
Fax: 011 884 5672
Email: fmf@mweb.co.za
Website: www.freemarketfoundation.com




Property: ANC's land expropriation policy slammed

A leading former black consciousness activist has called the race-based policy and ANC resolutions on land policy 'utterly despicable' and 'repugnant' and says the country should focus attention on policies that will help fuel much-needed economic growth instead. As reported in Legalbrief Today last week, the SA Property Owners Association, Sapoa, issued a cautiously-worded statement in a tone of resignation around land expropriation. It said it was of the view that the adoption of the Bill would provide adequate protection for land and property owners in the event of expropriation'. The ruling party wants to see at least one in three farms 'redistributed' over the next five years, among its property-related plans. But according to a Realestateweb report, Temba Nolutshungu, respected Free Market Foundation director and a former black consciousness movement activist of the late 1960s and 1970s, said SA should forget about land expropriation. Land grabs should be 'scrapped alto
gether' and the political leaders
should instead apply their minds to developing policies to help get the economy growing at 8%. Farms that have been handed over on a restitution basis so far are lying fallow in many cases, he noted, which is 'evidence' you can't just hand over commercially productive agricultural land to the inexperienced and expect a positive result. Instead of expropriating land currently in the hands of white farmers, the government should hand over state land to emerging farmers, he suggested. Nolutshungu added that the fact that expropriation is to be conducted on a 'racial basis' was 'a very bad idea'. 'I find it so utterly despicable and repugnant that we can still issue racially discriminatory policies. It is something I feel strongly about. It is not right at all. I can't come to terms with the fact that our statutes reflect racially-oriented policies,' he said.

Full Realestateweb report


Draft expropriation policy paper (PDF file)

http://www.legalbrief.co.za/publication/archives.php?mode=archive&p_id=Legalbrief_Today&issueno=2000&format=html

Tough times ahead

Up to 15 000 estate agents could be out of business by the end of the year, the Business Day reported on Monday. 14/04/08
Herschel Jawitz, CEO of Jawitz Properties, said the market would find a "fairly significant fall off" in the number of registered estate agents this year.
"It could be as much as a 15% to 20% fall off, which translates into around 10 000-15 000 fewer estate agents," said Jawitz.
He said there were about 80 000 estate agents registered with the Estate Agency Affairs Board.
He said the challenge for estate agents at the moment was less a matter of property prices and much more the volume of home sales, which had also declined by as much as 20% year-on-year

The sign of the devil - Agent off the hook

Taljaard v Botha Properties (666/06) [2008] ZASCA 38 (28 March 2008)

CASE NO: 666/06

Some people may say this is the Sign of the Devil – if you look at the case number.

But, not to pay the agreed commission to an agent that does not have a fidelity fund certificate is not on – they had a deal the judge said.

The estate agency (Botha Properties) has won a court victory that will support estate agents who sell property without having a valid fidelity fund certificates.

The Supreme Court of Appeal of SA ruled that a seller does not have the right to have commission returned if it emerges that the estate agent was operating without a fidelity fund certificate.

The delay in issuing of Fidelity fund certificates by the EAAB are a sore point in real estate sales' circles right now - A war of words is taking place in the media between agents and Ms Mapetla of the Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB), after it emerged that many estate agents are not in possession of valid fidelity fund certificates.

According to the previous interpretation of the law, estate agents who do not have a valid certificate when they act as agents are not entitled to commissions earned. This seems to have been overturned by this case. As judge Nugent said:

“It seems to me that that misconstrues the purpose of the section. It was not enacted for the benefit of clients who have incurred a contractual obligation to pay remuneration to an estate agent who has performed his or her mandate – I have already held that the contract giving rise to the obligation remains valid notwithstanding the breach of s 26 – but rather to penalize estate agents who have breached the section. An estate agent who claims remuneration in conflict with s 34A might expose himself or herself to criminal sanction, and will be prevented from enforcing his or her claim, but I do not think it follows by necessary implication that a client who has settled his or her contractual obligation is accorded a right of action for its return.”

Nugent dismissed the client's appeal with costs.