Want to install aircon, satellite dishes or some other addition to your sectional title home? Be careful not to spend any money before you’ve taken the correct steps… you may be forced to remove or demolish any unauthorised building or renovations! Our attorney’s, Masilo and Friedman, recently offered us the following advice:
An owner seeking to extend his/her section must first arrange with the body corporate to call for a special general meeting of all owners so as to pass a special resolution to allow the owner to extend his/her section. Thirty-days notice is usually required for such a meeting. The special resolution would have to be passed by at least three quarters of the owners present in the meeting. It is possible to obtain a special resolution by having three quarters of the owners sign a “round robin” resolution.
As previously stated: a unit in a sectional title scheme is something with four walls and a roof. A section is then a unit plus an exclusive use area. The Sectional Title Act 95 of 1986, specifically section 24, does not allow owners to change their section without first having received the approval of the other owners.
After the special resolution has been passed plans need to be drawn by a land surveyor and submitted to the Surveyor General for approval. The reason for this is due to the National Building Regulations and Building Standards Act 103 of 1997 section 4(1) which states, "No person shall, without the prior approval in writing of the local authority in question, erect any building in respect of which plans and specifications are to be drawn and submitted in terms of this Act."
Once plans are approved they can be registered in the Deeds Office.
Owners with ‘illegal buildings’ (ie : buildings without plans or plans not approved by the relevant authority) may be forced to knock them down by local authorities, even if they bought them that way, especially if these extensions do not comply with building regulations. Illegal buildings and out of date electrical certificates could also be a reason for denying insurance claims. Where there is a bond over the section, the bondholder’s consent must be lodged with the application to extend in the Deeds office.
If you have any questions, or need help with buying, selling or renting your home, contact us at Rivigan Property Group for more information.
