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Estate Agents usually work for around 7% plus vat or 7,98% total on the negotiated selling price of your property. Agents usually assist in valuing your property, finding a Purchaser, negotiating the sale and doing the required paperwork but they are not essential! Other service providers will assist you only by providing you with boards, photographing and advertising your home on the Internet and then do the required paperwork once you have found a Purchaser for a smaller but still considerable amount!
The immediate and obvious benefit of selling your own property is that you will
save thousands of Rands on payment of Agent’s commission. If you have a property
for sale and are planning on selling it on your own without the help of an Agent
or Middle Man it is not as difficult as many believe it is. This Site gives you the
option to photograph your own property and advertise it directly on the Internet.
You also get all the advice you need to assist you to find a Purchaser for your
property and then to do your own paperwork, all at virtually no cost!
Property owners with houses for sale that have a tenant residing on the property must bare in mind the
tenants’ rights. A written or verbal Lease Agreement comes first. They should also
have the ‘right of first refusal’ whereby you should allow them first option to
purchase the property by notifying them of your intentions in writing within seven
(7) days after expiry of the lease and inviting them to make a written offer within
ten (10) days after receiving such notice.
Okay now, let’s assume you have attracted a seemingly good Purchaser for your property who is either your tenant as above or by, for instance, advertising on this site then you will need to ask them how they intend to arrange financing. You should also read the information on Negotiating Skills on this Site.
Find out if the Purchaser has to sell off an asset (such as his own house) to obtain
financing for the purchase of your home. If so, you could still have a sale but
one that may take time or fall through due to the Purchaser not being able to sell
his own home within a limited time period. A Standard contract document (Offer to
Purchase) usually states that if you obtain a better Purchaser i.e. one who has
available finances then the above Purchaser has the almost impossible task of finding
alternate financing (such as a bank loan) or confirming the sale of their property
within 3 days.
Also find out if the Purchaser has a deposit to pay and if they are paying cash
for the final amount or if they require a Home Loan (Bond Grant) from a financial
institution such as a bank. If they are paying a large deposit or if they are a
cash buyer they may still require a limited time to release their funds into your
nominated Attorney’s Trust Account. As the Seller you have the legal right to appoint
an Attorney to tend to the sale (transfer) of your own property even though it is
usually the Purchaser that pays the Attorney’s costs. Never handle any Purchaser’s
funds, this should be left to your Attorney. There are lists of some Transfer Attorney's
advertised on the Home Page of this Site. Not all other Attorneys will tend to a
property transfer so you should enquire about this if you have an Attorney in mind.
Remind the Purchaser about their need to pay for Attorney’s transfer costs and perhaps
bond registration costs as well (if they need to apply for a bond). For simplicity
these costs can be obtained via the Attorney’s link on the right hand side of this
site. It may be necessary for the Purchaser to allow for these additional costs
on the ‘Offer to Purchase’ document that goes to the Bond Originator or financial
institution.
In the event that the Purchaser needs to apply for a Home Loan from a financial
institution in order to purchase your property you can do a simple check by using
the Affordability Calculator on the Home Page of this site before contacting a
Bond Originator. You can also refer to our Bond Calculator on the right hand side of
this Site to see what the monthly repayments will be but you will need to know the
current interest rate to use this successfully. Note that the average repayment
term that the banks allow for is usually 20 years (240 months) but this may vary
according to the Purchaser’s affordability or requirements.
If the Purchaser seems to have the correct financing or very close to it then it
will be worth proceeding with the paperwork. Bond Originators will pass the Purchaser’s
loan application onto the major banks for appraisal. Not all banks work on the same
appraisal method and so one bank may refuse a loan and another grant one for the
same client. Banks may also grant certain ‘credit worthy’ Purchasers a reduced ‘interest
rate’ whereby they may be offered a couple of percent or more below the current
‘prime lending rate’. This can greatly reduce the monthly bond repayment amount
and secure a Bond Grant for certain Purchasers. There are links to Bond Originators
on the right hand side of this Site, their services are free to you as their remuneration
is received from the banks.
Okay now, after asking which payment method best suits the Purchaser, you may commence
with the paperwork (Offer to Purchase document). You can download and copy one from
the Home Page of this Site. We also offer step-by-step info (in a side column) on
the filling in of this form that you should read carefully prior to filling in the
form. You may then pass this original document on to your nominated Attorney but
keep a copy for yourself and pass others on to the Purchaser and Bond Originator
on behalf of the Purchaser.
If you are nervous about doing the paperwork or do not fully understand it then
we recommend that you simply take the Purchaser with you to the offices of your
Attorney. Transfer Attorney’s usually keep the required documentation. Any Agreement
will be subject to conditions such as the Purchaser needing to apply for and obtain
a Bond Grant within a limited period of time. By personally submitting a copy of
the document to a Bond Originator you are able to ensure that their application
gets underway and that you are also kept informed as to any progress.
Some Purchaser’s prefer to arrange their own financing by approaching their own
bank directly for a Home Loan. If they would prefer this then make sure that they
give you the contact details of their Home Loans Consultant so that you can also
follow up if need be.
Once a Letter of Bond Grant has been issued to the Purchaser for a Home Loan and
the Purchaser has indicated his acceptance of it then you should request that a
copy gets sent to you as proof so that you can instruct your Attorney that they
can proceed with the sale. Be certain that you are sure which financial institution
your Purchaser is accepting for their Home Loan as sometimes a Purchaser may get
approval from more than one bank.
You can read our information on Property Transfer Info to gain an insight as to how the Attorney’s tend to the paperwork and transfer from here on.
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