Property buyers say deposits were paid to an estate agent, but ownership documents never materialised.
North West clerk Ezekiel Jonasie has come to rue the day he and his fiancé met Ester Smit, the alleged rogue estate agent who allegedly vanished with their R400 000 deposit for a R1 million house in Zeerust.
December 2022 marked the beginning of a nightmare that would leave his family homeless, indebted and displaced across provinces.
Promises of ownership that never materialised
He said that Smit, of Ester Smit Eiendomme, had told them the property was part of a deceased estate.
The agreement with Smit was that they will pay the deposit and then pay R3 650 monthly towards the bond.
“We moved into the house after paying the deposit but every time we asked for bond repayment documents, none were forthcoming.
“We later discovered that she had instead arranged a rental stay for us,” Jonasie said.
He said from then on Smit ignored their calls and they were kicked out of the house in December.
The 42-yearold father from Potchefstroom said attempts to recoup their deposit from Smit have been fruitless and he had lost hope of getting their money back.
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He said they were drowning in mounting debt because of Smit and that she has defrauded too many people of hefty sums, so he doubted there was any way she could repay that money.
Another family trapped in legal limbo
When Lenah Wilson handed over her life savings to buy a modest house in Zeerust in 2018, she believed she was securing stability for her family.
Instead, seven years later, she remains in legal limbo, living in a home that is still registered in the name of a deceased owner, despite having paid the full purchase price and transfer costs.
Wilson said she bought the property through Ester Smit Eiendomme for R250 000, paying a R100 000 deposit upfront.
Over the next 11 months, she paid the remaining R150 000, all directly into the agency’s account.
In August 2019, she was instructed to pay R12 700 in transfer fees, followed by a further R17 000.
“I trusted that everything was being handled properly.
“I was repeatedly assured that the transfer was in progress,” she said.
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