SOUTHERN SUBURBS BOUTIQUE PROPERTY COMPANY | Tel: +27 21 762 4444
The timing of the buyer’s occupation of a home can be critical
The selling of a home frequently involves a whole chain of related property transactions, involving two or even three buyers and sellers, and this can cause complications related to the occupation date, says Anton Du Plessis, CEO of Vineyard Estates.
“Occupation on transfer is,” he says, “the widely accepted practice – and our experience indicates that that it is preferable to other arrangements, but it is not always possible.”
If the buyer moves in prior to transfer, said Du Plessis, there is always a danger that he will then find that certain aspects of the home are not to his liking – and he may then instruct his conveyancer to hold up the transfer while he negotiates for remedial action.
“If the buyer is a shrewd operator accustomed to sailing close to the wind, he may ensure that the transfer is delayed and that he pays occupational rental for several months. This will be to his benefit because in most cases the occupational rental is only 50 to 70% of what he would be paying each month on his bond.”
To prevent situations of this kind arising, said Du Plessis, if at all possible, the occupational rent should be set, at the current bank rate, as a percentage of the total purchase price.
Arrangements for some kind for occupation before transfer, says Du Plessis, should be included in all sale contracts because transfer dates can vary, they are dependent on other transactions such as the obtaining of a SARS tax certificate and a rates clearance certificate and other documentation, the dates of which cannot be guaranteed.
“Accepting that the average transfer takes two and a half to three months, it is wise to set a transfer and occupation date well ahead, say, at least three months ahead. Most conveyancers will agree that it is almost impossible to guarantee a specific transfer date. At present, it takes over ten working days from lodgement at the Deeds Office until actual registration of transfer. It can be appropriate to insert a clause in the deed of sale that states that occupation can occur on a specific date, provided that lodgement of the transfer has occurred. Failing this, it is also wise to specify a time on the day of transfer for occupation to occur – say midday. This allows all parties to plan ahead and to instruct the movers correctly,” he says.
When writing out an offer to purchase, the buyer should not automatically specify the date of occupation to be the first of any month: he should check if the occupation date is set for the weekend. The usual practice is to set the transfer and move on the first day of the month but, if this is a Sunday, it is likely that no removal service will be available on that day – and it should be remembered that, as most removal companies like to pack the goods the day before they do the move, Monday is also not a good day for a move. Quite often, says Du Plessis, it will happen that one removal company works faster than another – with the result that the buyer’s fully loaded van may have to wait hours before the seller’s packers move out of the home. For this reason, he says, the actual time of the occupation should also be specified.
Ideally, says Du Plessis, the seller should be allowed two or three days after his move to clean up the house.
“Any move will cause a mess. The conscientious seller will always ask for a day or two to clean the fitted carpets, tiles and windows.”
Although estate agents are seldom directly involved in organising a move, their experience can be valuable to the clients – and should be drawn on, added du Plessis.