MC2Agent

The Property Practitioners Act, 22 of 2019 (PPA) & the Regulations that were Gazetted on 14 January 2022 came into operation on 1 February 2022 and brings a number of changes to the property industry.

Over the course of the next 7 weeks we will discuss how defects and the disclosure of defects must be addressed in terms of the PPA. This article is Part 2 in the series which discusses the application of the Property Condition Report.
 
1. The process

Step 1. The seller (or nominee/fiduciary) discloses the required defects by supplying a completed and signed copy of this report to the agent when he/she is mandated to market the property.
Step 2. The prospective purchaser views and conducts a proper inspection (self or through a home inspector) of the property.
Step 3. The agent delivers a copy of the completed and signed report to the prospective purchaser, who must acknowledge receipt thereof, before an offer is made. 
Step 4. The prospective purchaser studies the report to familiarise him-/herself with the legal principles and to establish the extent of the defects disclosed by the seller.
Step 5. If the purchaser makes an offer, all the defects must be considered and dealt with in the offer.
Step 6. This report is incorporated into the agreement and the seller confirms he/she is not aware of any additional or new defects after signature of this report.
 

Please refer to our Seller’s Guide and Purchaser's Guide for a detailed discussion on the Property Condition Report.

The Property Practitioners Act, 22 of 2019 (PPA) & the Regulations that were Gazetted on 14 January 2022 came into operation on 1 February 2022 and brings a number of changes to the property industry.
 
Over the course of the next 7 weeks we will discuss how defects and the disclosure of defects must be addressed in terms of the PPA. This article is Part 1 in the series and discusses the disclosure of defects and the legal status of the IPCR.
 
Defects under the PPA part 1
 
Disclosure of defects
 
The (PPA) requires the seller to disclose certain defects in a prescribed format, the Immovable Property Condition Report (IPCR) (herein called the Report), if an estate agent is appointed to market a property. The estate agent must obtain this completed and signed report from the seller before he/she is legally permitted to accept a mandate to market the property.
 
Legal status of this report
 

- This report is regarded as a complete written record of the defects the seller is required by law to disclose to the purchaser before an offer is made.
- The report does not constitute a warranty made by the seller, or nominee/fiduciary or the estate agent to the purchaser relating to the existence, nature or extent of any defect.
- The report is not an undertaking by the seller to repair or replace any of the defects disclosed, unless the seller commits him/herself thereto contractually in the agreement. 
- The signatory discloses the information therein in the full knowledge that prospective purchasers