The Surveyor-General is watching

A small, seemingly simple addition to the regulations under the Sectional Titles Act, 95 of 1986 “the Act”, has added significant consumer protection for owners in sectional title schemes that are subject to the developer’s right to extend the scheme.

The Act allows the developer of a sectional title scheme to reserve the right to add sections and exclusive use areas to the scheme at some later date. Any person buying into a sectional title scheme needs to know if this “future development right” has been reserved because the scheme as it exists at the time could be substantially changed, making the choice of that scheme a serious mistake for the individual concerned. This is so important that all sale contracts for units in schemes subject to future development rights must disclose the existence of the right. If it does not, the purchaser can void the sale and just walk away.

Paddocks