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• Death certificate or death notice.
• Identity document of the deceased.
• Letters of Executorship (J238) (if applicable).
• Letter of Authority (J170) (in cases where the estate is less than R250 000).
• Certified copy of the executor’s identity document.
• Power of attorney(if applicable).
• The name, address and contact details of the executoror agent.
• The last Will and Testament of the deceased.
• An inventory of the deceased’s assets.
• The liquidation and distribution accounts (if available).

• After the date of death of a person, a new taxable entity comes into existence – the “estate”.
• The assets of the deceased will be held by the estate until the liquidation and distribution account has lain for inspection and become final under section 35(12) of the Administration of Estates Act after which the assets will be either handed over to the heirs or delivered to the trustee of a trust estate.
  

References:

• http://www.sars.gov.za/TaxTypes/EstateDuty/Pages/default.aspx
• http://www.sars.gov.za/ClientSegments/Individuals/Tax-Stages/Pages/Tax-and-Inheritance.aspx

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You’ve scoured the web for what feels like weeks, and you’ve finally found your dream home! You’ve put in your offer, and it’s been accepted. But before you can pack your boxes and move into your dream home, there are certain requirements needed when buying a home in South Africa.

Property sales are usually handled by estate agents. They will assist in preparing the necessary documents and put the transfer and registration process into motion. In some cases, owners will buy and sell property privately, as this is legal in South Africa.

Once you want to purchase a property, the following will happen:

1. A document titled, “Offer to Purchase” will be signed by the purchaser as soon as the purchaser and seller have come to a mutual decision.
2. The purchaser signs the Offer to Purchase, after which it is submitted to the seller.
3. The signed Offer to Purchase becomes the new Deed of Sale. In the Deed of Sale, there may be certain suspensive conditions such as raising a mortgage bond, and once these conditions have been met, the contract between the purchaser and the seller will be binding.
4. The Deed of Sale is then sent to a conveyancer, who will take care of all the financial arrangements and ensure that all finances are in place and secure.
5. Before the transaction can be submitted to the Deeds Office, the conveyancer will prepare all the documents. Once these documents have been submitted, the transfer process will begin.
6. A Municipal Clearance Certificate for rates and taxes is then requested by the conveyancer from the municipality.
7. The purchaser is required to pay the transfer duty and registration costs before the documents will be submitted to the Deeds Office, while the seller will have to provide a Tax Clearance Certificate acquired from SARS.
8. At the time agreed upon in the Offer to Purchase, a cash deposit for the balance of the purchase price will have to be made into the conveyancer’s trust account.
9. If the property has a mortgage bond, a bond attorney will have to cancel the bond registration.
10. The transfer process can take two to three months to be finalised and the purchaser will be kept up to date on the progress of the transfer by either the agent or the conveyancer.

Once the property is registered in the purchaser’s name, the property officially has a new owner, and you can start moving into your newly-bought dream home!

This article is a general information sheet and should not be used or relied on as legal or other professional advice. No liability can be accepted for any errors or omissions nor for any loss or damage arising from reliance upon any information herein. Always contact your legal adviser for specific and detailed advice. Errors and omissions excepted (E&OE)

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When a person dies, they leave behind an estate which includes everything they own. Estate Duty is payable on the estate of every person who dies and whose nett estate is in excess of R3,5 million. It is charged at the rate of 20%. Currently, SARS is responsible for collecting the Estate Duty of a deceased person.

How does an estate get reported to SARS?

Even if Estate Duty does not apply to you, it is still necessary to inform SARS that the person is deceased. It is recommended that you consult with a legal expert when going through such as process.

Copies of the following documents must be sent to SARS:

1. Death certificate or death notice.
2. Identity document of the deceased.
3. Letters of Executorship (J238) (if applicable).
4. Letter of Authority (J170) (in cases where the estate is less than R250 000).
5. Certified copy of the executor’s identity document.
6. Power of attorney (if applicable).
7. The name, address and contact details of the executor or agent.
8. The last Will and Testament of the deceased.
9. An inventory of the deceased’s assets.
10. The liquidation and distribution accounts (if available).

These documents may be sent to the relevant Centralised Processing Centres that is closest to the Master of the High Court where the estate is being administered.

How does Estate Duty work in relation to an inheritance?

All income received or accrued before the deceased’s death is taxable in the hands of the deceased up until the date of death, and will be administered by the executor or administrator acting as the deceased’s representative taxpayer.

1. After the date of death of a person, a new taxable entity comes into existence – the “estate”.
2. The assets of the deceased will be held by the estate until the liquidation and distribution account has lain for inspection and become final under section 35(12) of the Administration of Estates Act after which the assets will be either handed over to the heirs or delivered to the trustee of a trust estate.

This article is a general information sheet and should not be used or relied on as legal or other professional advice. No liability can be accepted for any errors or omissions nor for any loss or damage arising from reliance upon any information herein. Always contact your legal adviser for specific and detailed advice. Errors and omissions excepted (E&OE)

References:

http://www.sars.gov.za/TaxTypes/EstateDuty/Pages/default.aspx

http://www.sars.gov.za/ClientSegments/Individuals/Tax-Stages/Pages/Tax-and-Inheritance.aspx

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IS TAX IMPOSED ON SUMS OF MONEY WHICH HAVE BEEN INHERITED?

Any asset which is attained by an heir to a deceased estate is termed as a ‘capital receipt’ and is not included in the heir’s gross income. Thus, tax is not payable by an heir who receives an inheritance from a deceased estate. Further, an heir to a deceased estate is not liable for payment of Capital Gains Tax (CGT). Any CGT which would be due by the estate is payable before the inheritance is transferred to the beneficiaries. As mentioned above, an asset does not give rise to a capital gain at the time of its inheritance – any capital gain or loss is only worked out once the asset is ultimately sold or disposed of in any other manner.

WHAT IS ESTATE DUTY?

During a person’s lifetime, all one’s income is taxable, that is, up until one’s date of death. After a person’s death, a new taxable entity is formed, which is called an “estate”. Every death must be reported to SARS, even if the estate is not liable for the payment of ‘Estate Duty’.

The estate of a deceased individual is subject to an amount of 20% Estate Duty. This percentage is only imposed once a deduction of R3.5 million against the net value of the estate has been taken into account. To illustrate this, see the worked example below:

Net value of estate:                                                                         R4 million
Estate duty only dutiable on the amount exceeding: R3.5 million
Amount exceeding R3.5 million:                                             R500 000.00
20% of R500 000.00:                                                                     R100 000.00

Thus, the executor of the estate will be responsible for paying the amount of R100 000.00 to South African Revenue Service (SARS) in Estate Duty.

Estate Duty is due to SARS within one year of date of death, or 30 days from date of assessment if assessment is issued within one year of date of death. Currently, interest is charged at 6% p.a. on late payments.

Compiled by: Laura Ames

This article is a general information sheet and should not be used or relied on as legal or other professional advice. No liability can be accepted for any errors or omissions nor for any loss or damage arising from reliance upon any information herein. Always contact your legal adviser for specific and detailed advice. Errors and omissions excepted (E&OE)

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Residents in a Sectional Title Scheme are subject to the rules and regulations of the Body Corporate. These rules and regulations are governed by the Sectional Titles Act.

When you intend to make structural alterations to your unit there is a procedure prescribed by the Act that should be complied with before you start with the alterations. Any alterations that extend the boundaries or floor area of the unit will be seen as an extension.

The legal requirements that must be adhered to are discussed below.

Step One:

The Act stipulates that you should first obtain the consent of the Body Corporate. Usually the trustees will hold a general meeting and the members must pass a special resolution to agree to the alterations. You will require the consent of 75% of the owners who are present at the meeting for the special resolution to be passed. This, however, could be time-consuming as the members have to be notified of the meeting thirty days in advance. Alternatively you can also obtain a special resolution by approaching all the owners individually and obtaining the consent of 75% of all the owners.

Step Two: 

Once the Body Corporate’s consent has been obtained, plans of the extension should be drawn up and approved by the Local Authority.

Step Three:

A Land Surveyor should be appointed to draw up new Sectional Title Plans of the Scheme to incorporate the extension. These plans have to be approved by the Surveyor General.

Step Four: 

Consult with your attorney who will submit the necessary application for the registration of the amended Sectional Title Plan, as well as the noting of the extension of the unit to the Deeds Office.

If the unit is bonded the attorney will have to obtain consent from the mortgagee of the unit.

With the application to the Deeds Office a transfer duty receipt from SARS must be lodged based on the increase in value of the property. It is advisable to obtain two estate agents’ valuations based on the pre- and post-alterations value of the property.

The Surveyor must stipulate on the Sectional Title Plan that there is not a deviation of more than 10 percent in the participation quota of the unit as a result of the alterations. If there is a deviation of more than 10% the attorney must obtain the consent of the mortgagees of each and every unit in the Scheme.

It is very important that Sectional Title owners adhere to the legalities as an omission could cause extensive delays when the property is sold.

References:

Section 24 of the Sectional Titles Act
Sectional Titles, Share Blocks and Time Sharing, Vol 1, Prof CG vd Merwe
Demystifying Sectional Title, M Constas and K Bleijs
Sectional Title on Tap, Vol 1, Tertius Maree
Article by J Paddock
Article by Rob White

This article is a general information sheet and should not be used or relied on as legal or other professional advice. No liability can be accepted for any errors or omissions nor for any loss or damage arising from reliance upon any information herein. Always contact your legal adviser for specific and detailed advice.

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