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Fairview row continues despite ruling
The Herald - South Africa
The Fairview and Salisbury Park land dispute in Port Elizabeth's western suburbs is set to continue despite a recent court ruling giving Port Elizabeth Land Restitution and Housing Association the go-ahead for the development and re-distribution of the land.

Opposing the court decision, affected land claimants, through their representative body, the Concerned Land Claimants' Organisation, filed for an urgent application in the Port Elizabeth High Court yesterday, seeking leave to appeal against the court ruling. The ruling was made by Land Claims Court Chief Justice Fikile Bam in November last year, giving the go-ahead for the servicing and re-distribution of the land. Bam reserved judgment in the leave to appeal application.
The Herald

Property search market set for more OFT scrutiny
Legal IT - UK
The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) has launched a market study of the property search industry.

The move, which was signalled last year, follows complaints from property search companies about difficulties in accessing property information from information holders - each of which has a statutory monopoly over the information they hold. The study will also assess competition in the market as a whole, which is worth about £200m.

Some information holders including local authorities, the Land Registry and the Environment Agency have also expressed concerns that the introduction of electronic conveyancing may cause them to lose some or all of the revenue they currently receive from providing property information.
LegalIT

Lawyer paid up for phantom court win
The Age - Australia
The client was happy with the payout after her seven-year compensation battle. She just felt that since her lawyer had withheld the settlement for 18 months, she was entitled to interest.

But when the NSW Office of the Legal Services Commissioner investigated, it found that the payout did not exist and neither did the case. The lawyer had run a phantom case, telling the client of all the "developments" and "problems" on the way, then paid the five-figure sum out of his own pocket.
The Age

Land claims "settled in 2005"
News24.com - South Africa
All outstanding land claims would be settled by the end of the year, said the Commission on Restitution of Land Rights on Monday.

Chief land claims commissioner Tozi Gwanya said the commission would start soon with its verification campaign, which would appeal to claimants to provide all the documentation needed to ensure they were bona fide claims. Gwanya said: "This verification process is crucial for us to meet our targets."
News24.com

Rentals for the birds
Moneyweb - South Africa
While the residential property market might be sizzling - with prices growing by about 32% last year - property investors are advised to be wary of venturing into the buy-to-let market.

According to Herchel Jawitz, CEO of Jawitz Properties, the rental market is over supplied, particularly in Johannesburg.

Jawitz adds that the problem is compounded by the fact that demand for rental property has shrunk. As a result, explains Jawitz, gross yields have fallen to between 5 and 7%. Net yields are in the region of 1 to 2% after inflation.

Jawitz says this is fantastic for tenants because they can secure good deals, but owners are under pressure and some may be forced to rent at a huge loss.
Moneyweb

Property nightmare: aviary costly mistake
Telegraph - UK
Mary Wilson meets a couple who discovered the "bungalow" they had bought was actually a birdhouse.

Lucy and John Horne bought their house in York for the bungalow in its garden, thinking that Lucy's mother would be able to move into it after having a hip operation. They knew that the bungalow needed modernising, but on moving in they found that it did not have planning permission and ended up spending more than £30,000 over their budget.
Telegraph