Home Owners Compliance Certificates

If you think that a property is easy to sell and any tom, dick and harry can do it – think again.

Home owners are subject to increasing compliance requirements. Municipal laws require home owners to apply for certain certificates before they sell their property. Here is a few important ones to remember:

Beetle certificate: mostly affects beetle infestation in roof trusses.
Electrical certificate: the owner must comply before the local authority will connect the electricity supply.
Electric fence compliance certificate: electric fences must comply in terms of the Electrical Machinery Regulations of 2011 and the Occupational Health and Safety Act 85 of 1993, that the fence shall not deliver a lethal amount of electricity.
Gas certificate: due to the rapidly increasing electricity prices, more and more owners are opting for gas stoves as an alternative to the conventional stove. The owner must supply the purchaser with a copy of the gas certificate to assure that the unit is installed correctly and operates safely.
Plumbing/water certificate: this certificate assures the purchaser that the plumbing/water installation has no defects i.e. the water meter is registered and no sewage water is affected by storm water discharges complying with national building regulations.

All the above mentioned documents is an extra speed bump in the road for sellers, but assure the purchaser that the property is in good condition.

Le-Shaun Ferreira is a candidate valuer at Cape Value (Pty) Ltd and can be reached on leshaun@capevalue.co.za.