Conveyancing attorneys in South Africa

Mukwani Attorneys

Rosebank, Johannesburg, Gauteng Experience not supplied

Mukwani Attorneys is a Johannesburg-based law firm committed to providing professional, personalised and effective legal solutions. We assist individuals and businesses across a range of legal matters, including family law, divorce, criminal law, litigation, commercial law, labour law, property law and estates. Our approach is built on honesty, integrity, quality and excellence, with a focus on understanding each client's unique needs and providing practical legal guidance.

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Plain-language guide

What a conveyancer does.

A conveyancer is an attorney who has passed the conveyancing examination and is admitted to register deeds. Only a conveyancer may lodge a transfer, a bond or a servitude at the Deeds Office. They collect the transfer duty, obtain rates clearance and compliance certificates, draft the deed of transfer and attend to registration, and they account to both seller and purchaser.

When you need one

You are buying or selling a house, a flat or land, whether privately or through an agent.
You are registering or cancelling a mortgage bond.
You are transferring property to a spouse, a child, a trust or a company.
You need a servitude, a subdivision, a consolidation or a sectional title scheme registered.

How fees usually work

Transfer and bond fees follow a recommended tariff that rises with the price, plus VAT, and are quoted on a pro-forma account before you sign. Transfer duty goes to SARS and Deeds Office fees to the state; they are not the conveyancer fee. The purchaser normally pays transfer costs, the seller usually chooses the conveyancer, and the bond attorney is appointed by the bank.

Questions to ask before you instruct

What is the total I must pay before registration, and what portion is your fee?
How long do you expect the transfer to take, and what usually delays it?
Who arranges the rates clearance, the electrical certificate and the FICA documents?
Will I get a final statement showing every rand in and out?

See the listed practitioners Estimate the transfer costs first

General information about South African law and practice, not advice on your matter. The practitioners listed on this page give that advice.

Conveyancer questions

Who pays the conveyancer when a house is sold?

The purchaser pays the transfer costs, including the conveyancer fee, transfer duty and Deeds Office fees, while the seller usually appoints the conveyancer. The seller pays for the compliance certificates, the bond cancellation attorney and the estate agent commission. All of this can be varied in the offer to purchase.

How much is transfer duty in South Africa?

Transfer duty is a tax calculated on a sliding scale from the SARS table in force when the offer was signed, with no duty below the first threshold. When the seller is a VAT vendor selling from the business, VAT applies instead. The transfer cost calculator on this site applies the current table.

How long does a property transfer take?

Typically eight to twelve weeks from a signed offer to registration, once the suspensive conditions such as bond approval are met. Rates clearance, a slow bank, a missing certificate or an estate seller can add weeks. Ask the conveyancer for progress updates at each stage.

For the practitioners listed here

Software built for conveyancers.

Transfer costs from the SARS tables, pro-forma and final accounts, stage tracking and automatic client updates.

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