Chas Everitt Yzerfontein

13/10/2026

Is jou beleggingsplanne gereed vir jou Weskus-vakansiehuis?
’n Weskushuis met die regte ligging, uitsig en prys bly gewoonlik nie lank op die mark nie, veral in die aanloop tot die somervakansie. Wanneer die perfekte eiendom beskikbaar is, wil jy ’n aanbod kan maak sonder om eers te skarrel om finansiering, dokumente en regsadvies in plek te kry.

’n Voorbereide koper is nie iemand wat oorhaastig teken nie. Dit is iemand wat vooraf weet wat hy kan bekostig, in wie se naam die eiendom geregistreer moet word en waarvoor dit gebruik gaan word. Daardie voorbereiding stel jou in staat om vinnig op te tree en ingeligte besluite oor jou eiendomsbelegging te kan neem.

Voordat jy jou handtekening op ’n koopaanbod plaas, maak seker die regsfondasie is gelê vir ’n suksesvolle eiendomstransaksie.
Bereken meer as net die koopprys
Besluit vooraf in wie se naam jy koop
Kry jou papierwerk in orde
Bepaal vooraf wat in die koopaanbod moet staan
Weet wat jy werklik koop
Regsleiding gee jou ’n voorsprong

30/09/2026

What Property Owners Should Know About Storm and Flood Insurance

With weather patterns becoming increasingly unpredictable, property owners must ensure that they have the correct insurance policies to cover potential financial losses.

As we recently witnessed, severe weather across the country, including heavy rainfall, storm surges, and localised flooding, caused extensive damage to homes, infrastructure, and personal property. Many people were left with unmanageable financial problems.

Non-life property insurance is designed to alleviate this stress and pay for the repair, replacement, or rebuilding of damaged structures and the loss of household contents.

What’s Typically Covered
Property insurance coverage can be tailored to include the following:
Immediate emergency assistance: Some insurers provide a small upfront cash settlement to help you through the immediate problems after a flood. This is so you can buy urgent necessities like clothing and toiletries before your main claim is settled.
Alternative accommodation: Most insurance policies cover the cost of temporary furnished accommodation if flood damage requires you to move out of your home while repairs or rebuilding take place. If you have insured your building and its contents with different companies, notify all insurers so they can coordinate the costs. In many cases, one insurer will arrange the accommodation and recover a proportionate share of the expense from the other.
Emergency repairs and documentation: You may need to do some immediate repairs to prevent further damage to your property, but be sure to notify your insurer before you start. The burden of proof rests with you, which means that you must photograph all damage before it is repaired and keep all receipts for materials and labour to ensure that your claims are paid.
Garden and landscape restoration: Most policies cover the cost of clearing flood debris and restoring damaged gardens and grounds.
There are, however, specific exclusions of which you should be aware.

Here are some common grounds for claim rejections or reduced settlements:
Under-insurance: This means that your insured sum is lower than the actual cost of rebuilding your home or replacing its contents at current retail prices. Make sure your policy covers all assets at full replacement value.
Unauthorised structures: If any structure is not included in the official building plans approved by your local municipality, insurance may not cover the cost of a rebuild.
Poor workmanship: If your property was not built in accordance with national building standards, the insurer may reject your claim. Insurance policies exclude damage caused by defective construction.
As climate variability intensifies, consumers are encouraged to understand how insurance can help mitigate the financial impact of flooding and water-related damage.

Here are a few tips if you do drive during a storm:
If conditions appear dangerous, turn back.
Do not attempt to drive through standing water or across flooded bridges. Shallow, moving water can sweep a vehicle off the road or cause you to lose control, and floodwater often hides deep potholes, debris, and structural road collapse.
Keep your headlights on.
Reduce speed and double your following distance.
If your vehicle becomes stranded in rising water, abandon it immediately and move to higher ground.
Remember, prevention is the best course of action. Check your home policies and ensure that any building plans are legitimate. If you must travel, check the weather conditions, and do a thorough safety check on your vehicle: windscreen wipers, brakes, and lights (including indicators).

With weather patterns becoming increasingly unpredictable, property owners must ensure that they have the correct insurance policies to cover potential financial losses.

27/09/2026

21/09/2026

Can Your Neighbour’s CCTV Camera Point into Your Property?

Security has limits
The camera owners argued that the system had been installed for legitimate security reasons, including concerns about crime and protecting their property.

The Court recognised the importance of security. The question was whether monitoring the neighbouring property was a reasonable and justifiable way of achieving that objective.

On the evidence, however, the Court was not persuaded that security was the primary concern. It concluded that the security concerns were secondary to a grievance about structures on the neighbouring property.

The evidence also showed that significant portions of the cameras’ viewing angles were directed at the neighbouring property, including areas the Court regarded as intimate and private.

Privacy does not stop at the boundary wall
Section 14 of the Constitution protects the right to privacy. As interpreted by the Constitutional Court, that protection includes a sphere of intimacy and autonomy that should be protected from intrusion.

The Court found that areas such as a private swimming pool, entertainment area and courtyard are places where people can reasonably expect to conduct their personal and family lives without being subjected to systematic surveillance.

https://kochlaw.co.za/can-your-neighbours-cctv-camera-point-into-your-property/property/

18/09/2026

Common building loan mistakes to avoid in South Africa
Applying for a building loan is an exciting step – it means you’re not just buying a home, you’re creating one. But the process is a little more complex than a standard home loan, and small missteps can lead to delays, added costs or unnecessary stress.

Here are some of the most common mistakes South Africans make when applying for a building loan – and how to avoid them.

Not fully understanding how a building loan works
Underestimating the true cost of building
Applying without approved building plans
Choosing the wrong builder
Not factoring in affordability properly
Not having all your documents ready
Trying to manage the process alone

Avoid costly building loan mistakes and keep your home-building project on track from the start.

09/09/2026

How to reduce your monthly housing costs

As living expenses continue to rise, many South African homeowners are looking for practical ways to make their monthly budgets stretch further. From bond repayments and municipal charges to insurance premiums and maintenance costs, the expenses associated with owning a home can add up quickly.

The good news is that reducing housing costs does not necessarily require major lifestyle sacrifices. In many cases, small financial adjustments and smarter household management can lead to meaningful savings over time while protecting the value of your property.

What are the best ways to reduce your monthly housing costs?
The most effective ways to reduce monthly housing costs are reviewing your home loan interest rate, paying extra into your bond when possible, reducing electricity and water consumption, comparing insurance providers, budgeting carefully, and maintaining your property proactively.

Review your home loan regularly
For most homeowners, the bond repayment is the largest monthly expense. Yet many people accept the home loan they originally secured and never reassess whether it still offers the best value.
Pay extra into your bond when possible
Making additional payments into your bond is one of the most effective ways to reduce the overall cost of homeownership.

While the immediate goal may be to lower monthly expenses, reducing the capital balance on your home loan can generate substantial long-term savings by decreasing the amount of interest charged over the repayment period.
Reduce electricity costs
Electricity remains one of the fastest-growing household expenses in South Africa. Managing energy consumption has become increasingly important for homeowners seeking to control monthly costs.
Cut water usage and lower municipal bills
Municipal charges are another major contributor to monthly housing costs. While homeowners have little control over tariff increases, they can control how much water they consume.
Create a realistic household budget
Budgeting remains one of the most effective tools for controlling housing costs.
Prioritise preventative maintenance
Delaying maintenance may seem like a way to save money in the short term, but it often results in larger and more expensive repairs later.
Review recurring household expenses
Many homeowners focus solely on major housing costs while overlooking smaller monthly commitments.
Build an emergency fund for homeownership costs
Owning a home inevitably involves unexpected expenses. Whether it is a burst geyser, storm damage, plumbing failure, or appliance replacement, unforeseen costs can arise at any time.

Discover practical ways to lower bond repayments, utility bills, insurance costs, and household expenses without sacrificing comfort.

31/08/2026

How to Make Your Beach Wedding Legally Valid in South Africa
South Africa’s coastline draws couples from across the country and abroad. The beaches of the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Garden Route are among the most scenic wedding backdrops imaginable. What many couples do not realise until late in the planning process is that South African marriage law places strict requirements on where a marriage may be legally solemnised, and the beach, however beautiful, does not automatically qualify.

What Is a Legally Valid Marriage in South Africa?
Where the Law Says a Marriage May Be Solemnised
There are two lawful approaches couples use:
Separate the legal signing from the beach celebration.
Use a qualifying venue on or near the beach.

South Africa's coastline draws couples from across the country and abroad. The beaches of the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and the Garden Route are among the most scenic wedding backdrops imaginable.

21/08/2026

Zero-Rated VAT on Property Sold as a Going Concern: SARS Updates Documentary Proof Requirements
The South African Revenue Service (SARS) has updated its guidance on the documentary proof required to support the zero-rating of goods and services for VAT purposes, including for the disposal of an enterprise or part of the enterprise as a going concern. These requirements are important where immovable property is sold as a going concern and the parties seek to apply VAT at the zero rate.

Documents SARS Requires for VAT at the Zero Rate
Interpretation Note 31 states that for the zero rate to apply when disposing of an enterprise or part of the enterprise as a going concern, SARS requires:

Foreigners Buying South African Property as a Going Concern Should Take Note
Under South African law, VAT treatment on the sale of property does not differentiate between a resident taxpayer and a non-resident for tax purposes.

Conclusion
SARS has reiterated that a vendor seeking to apply the zero rate bears the burden of proving that all the statutory requirements have been met. This requires the vendor to obtain and retain documentary proof that is acceptable to the Commissioner within the prescribed time periods.

Your complete, in-house team of legal, tax, and immigration experts for South African property investment.

17/08/2026

Property market holds firm as first-time buyers set a new price record
South Africa’s residential property market is proving remarkably resilient. Stable interest rates, improving affordability, and steadily rising household incomes are keeping buyer confidence intact, even as banks continue to nudge up their deposit requirements.
Prime rate on hold
The Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee kept its benchmark lending rate at 7% in July, holding the prime lending rate steady at 10.5%. For millions of indebted households, that decision brought welcome relief
Home loan applications prove sticky
With banks having lifted their deposit requirements back to the levels last seen in early 2024, when interest rates were at a 15-year high, a dip in home loan applications in July was predictable.
Affordability keeps improving
Banks have been playing yo-yo with deposit requirements ever since the fuel-driven inflation spike, raising them in April and May in anticipation of a rate increase, easing them in June, then lifting them again in July.

Is the market cooling, or just catching its breath? Banks have quietly nudged deposit requirements back to early-2024 levels, yet more home loans are being approved, incomes are climbing, and first-time buyers have just set a new record average purchase price. The latest BetterBond Property Brief sh...