Court in Morgenzon postpones RDP-house case

Mr Bafana Tshabalala, who told the Standerton Advertiser the details of his RDP housing dilemma, took the seller to court.

Mr Tshabalala initially went to the small claims court to get his money back after he paid R40 000 for a stand in Ext 4 in Sivukile, Morgenzon.

A bank transfer of R10 000 was made to the seller’s account of a property sold more than once.

According to him, the owner approached him and he realised his predicament.

He said the seller did not comply with the rules of the court to pay the money within 10 days.

The outcome of the small claims court case was such that he could not agree to the terms of repayment.

The case was then heard in the Morgenzon Magistrate’s Court on 26 January and postponed to 2 March.

According to Mr Tshabalala, her lawyer was absent.

The Tshabalalas are staying with family after a brief stay on the property and this teacher from Ermelo intends on getting legal representation.

The Standerton Advertiser contacted the communications manager of the Lekwa Municipality, Ms Thobeka Mtshiselwa, on 22 January, in connection with the selling of RDP houses.

One of the questions was what Lekwa’s position on the buying and selling of RDP houses entails.

Ms Mtshiselwa promptly replied that the municipality is investigating the issues regarding the selling of these houses and as a general principle, government-subsidised houses can not be sold or rented out by a beneficiary.

“This is further enforced by the restrictive conditions found in the title deeds of RDP houses, which prevents the selling of same within a period of eight years, which is calculated from the transfer date of ownership in the name of a particular beneficiary.

“However, it is widely understood that after the expiry of the eight year period, a beneficiary can dispose of the house if he/she desires to do so.”

Ms Mtshiselwa added that the requirement is that a beneficiary must first afford the Department of Human Settlements a first right of refusal before disposing same to any other party. According to her, this doesn’t happen in practice.

The MEC of the Department of Human Settlements in Mpumalanga, Ms Norah Mahlangu, also referred in a recent press statement to the Housing Amendment Act, that permits the selling of RDP houses after the period of eight years,

Ms Mahlangu recommended the involvement of lawyers in these cases, saying any unscrupulous and clandestine selling of a RDP houses, to the exclusion of lawyers, is bound to cause problems for both the buyer and the seller.