You’re almost an official homeowner. Here’s a closer look at what happens at the Deeds Office

A blog article by: Brendan Michie 

The Deeds Office is responsible for the registration, management, and maintenance of the property registry of South Africa and is responsible for the accurate examination, registration and record-keeping of all property transactions. 

It currently takes between 7 and 21 working days for a property to be registered at the Deeds Office.  

 

But what actually happens at the Deeds Office?  

In a nutshell, the Deeds Office procedure for registration follows several steps. A deed is examined on both a junior and senior level before arriving at the desk of a senior registrar who confirms whether the deed is passed or rejected.  

 

Here’s a step by step, behind the scenes look at the process:  

Step one:  

• Lodgement of deeds  
• Deeds are regulated by lodgement clerks  
• Lodgement clerks are responsible for data capturing and linking of deeds (where more than one attorney attends to the registration of transfer, registration of a bond and cancellation of a bond)  
• All parties in the property transaction and the property itself undergo a thorough search   

Step two:  

• Sorting of deeds 
• Deeds will be distributed to various examiners for the first examination  
• First examination is undertaken by a junior examiner   

Step three:  

• Sorting of deeds and distribution to senior level 
• Senior examiners pass or reject deeds   

Step four:  

• Assistant registrar monitors rejected deeds and has the final say on whether deeds pass or remain rejected  
• Rejected deeds will go directly to delivery to be returned to the relevant conveyancer 
• Deeds that have been passed will now be sent to the preparation room 

Step five:  

• Preparation of deeds by conveyancers and conveyancing clerks 
• This step takes about three days  
• Final check for interdicts  
• Deeds are ‘put forward’ for execution 

Step six  

• Deeds are executed  

 

Finally, the property is now registered in the new owner’s name.  

 

For more information: Brendan Michie – BrendanM@hammondpole.co.za