SA's foreign home owners have to comply with stricter legal processes

Until recently, when foreign buyers sold their residential properties in South Africa, they were allowed to repatriate all the funds brought into this country for this purpose - provided that their original deed of sale was endorsed to make it clear that they were genuinely non-residents.

This situation no longer pertains, says Lanice Steward, MD of Anne Porter Knight Frank, which each year handles a number of sales to foreign buyers.

Quoting from a recent Smith Tabata Buchanan Boyes (STBB) law report, Steward says foreign buyers now have to give the South African Reserve Bank a copy of the purchase agreement and all related documents. These include the final statement of account (usually supplied by the attorney) and the deal receipts from the bank that accepted the money.

"The additional steps now required," says Steward, "put an extra onus on the buyer to be completely in control of his documents. I believe it would be wise to keep personal copies of all of them."

'The additional steps required put an extra onus on the buyer'

Weekend Property Supplement (Saturday Argus)

Posted at 10:09AM Jul 27, 2009 by Editor in International  |