The Consumer Protection Act

Property transactions are complex and this was brought home recently when doing an inspection for a client. A young couple had bought a place from a developer off-plan. The developer built the house, and by and large the workmanship was good. The experience however, was not. Normal tensions between the  builders promises and clients expectations were […]

A letter we addressed to estate agents on 20 November 2018 turned out to be prophetic. It pointed out that organisations need to act in a way that is seen to be just and equitable and if they do not do so they will face the court of public opinion. In this case Momentum Insurance

Does the sellers declaration protect the buyer? The Consumer Tribunal set up in terms of the consumer protection act issued a judgment in 2014 that clarifies the rights of sellers and buyers in a second-hand property transaction. In case number NCT/12984/2014/75(1) (b) CPA the applicant sought relief from the first respondent (the estate agent), the

Home owners not adequately protected by legislative requirements Properly anchoring the roof to the walls in fundamental for structural soundness.  Yet there appears to be a loophole in the legislative requirements which may leave home buyers exposed. HouseCheck was recently commissioned to do a HouseCheck on two relatively newly built duplex units. When inspecting the roof

It would seem that nobody is exempt from being ripped off by bad workmanship, or by a shoddy approach to upgrades. HouseCheck offers a special report for those contemplating “upgrades” or those who may be in conflict with their builders. Use an indépendant SAHITA and NABISA accredited inspector to make sure your building operations proceed

Home inspectors are unable to document all defects in a home for the simple reason that not all defects are visible and therefore able to be observed by the inspector. For this reason most reputable home inspection strive for transparency and full disclosure up front and their reports usually come with a fair amount of

In rejecting an appeal against an insurance company for defective plumbing the Ombudsman for Short-Term Insurance, Dennis Jooste has warned home buyers that the onus remains on home buyers to satisfy themselves that the property was not defective in any form. Jooste dismissed a buyer’s claim against Absa for leaking water pipes in a recently

Dear John, I recently bought a house with a non compliant electrical CoC. I am a qualified electrician myself, but do not have a wireman’s license. I can see all the areas where there is no compliance. I have informed the transfer attorney of this as well as the estate agent, but all that I

The South Gauteng High Court has dismissed an urgent application with costs by Cell C against a banner critical of service at one of its retail outlets. This judgement followed the putting up of a huge banner on a busy road by an irate customer criticizing Cell C after attempting to have his phone repaired

Home inspection is really taking off in South Africa but estate agents are still lagging far behind international trends in consumer protection.  The majority of South African estate agents are still not recommending that buyers make a home inspection a condition of their offer if the property is being sold voetstoots. HouseCheck, South Africa’s leading home