Questions to ask before buying a sectional-title home in South Africa
General South African property-buyer literacy only. This page is not legal, financial, tax, valuation, investment, property-condition or contract-interpretation advice, and it is not advice about your particular situation.
Buying into a sectional title scheme is not only buying a home. It is joining a compulsory collective with shared costs, shared decisions and binding rules. Buyers tend to evaluate the unit — the finishes, the light, the price — while the things that will actually govern their monthly costs and daily freedoms sit in the scheme's documents. These are the questions worth asking before you commit, and the document that answers each one.
What exactly do I own, and what is common property?
In sectional title you own a defined section — measured, in broad terms, to the middle of the walls, floor and ceiling — plus an undivided share of the common property. Balconies, parking bays and gardens are often not part of your section at all but exclusive-use areas, which are a different thing with different rules.
- What confirms it:
- The sectional plan registered at the Deeds Office, and the title deed. Exclusive-use areas are recorded formally.
- Who to ask:
- A conveyancing attorney (the transferring attorney handles the transfer; you may also appoint your own).
- What Nostoi cannot decide:
- Nostoi cannot interpret a sectional plan or tell you what a specific exclusive-use right permits.
What is my participation quota, and what does it determine?
The participation quota is your share of the scheme. It generally drives what proportion of the levies you pay and the weight of your vote. Two similar-looking units can carry different quotas.
- What confirms it:
- The sectional plan and the scheme's rules record the quota.
- Who to ask:
- The managing agent or trustees; a conveyancer for what it obliges you to.
- What Nostoi cannot decide:
- Nostoi cannot tell you whether a quota is fairly allocated.
May I see the scheme's most recent audited financial statements and approved budget?
The scheme's financial position is the single best available indication of what your ownership will actually cost. A scheme that has been under-collecting or under-maintaining will eventually charge its owners for it.
- What confirms it:
- Audited annual financial statements and the approved budget, held by the body corporate or its managing agent.
- Who to ask:
- The managing agent or trustees, requested through the seller or agent.
- What Nostoi cannot decide:
- Nostoi cannot read a scheme's financial statements for you or judge its financial health. That is work for your conveyancer or an accountant.
Does the scheme hold a reserve fund, and is there a maintenance plan?
South African sectional title schemes are required to maintain a reserve fund and a written maintenance, repair and replacement plan. A scheme without a funded plan will meet major repairs through special levies instead — which fall on whoever owns at the time.
- What confirms it:
- The reserve fund balance appears in the financial statements; the maintenance plan is a separate document the body corporate should hold.
- Who to ask:
- The managing agent or trustees.
- What Nostoi cannot decide:
- Nostoi cannot tell you whether a reserve is adequate for the building's condition, or predict a special levy.
Has a special levy been raised before, or is one contemplated?
A special levy is an additional compulsory amount raised for a specific purpose. Past special levies tell you something about how the scheme has been run; a contemplated one may become your liability shortly after you move in.
- What confirms it:
- Trustee and general meeting minutes, and the financial statements.
- Who to ask:
- The managing agent or trustees; a conveyancer for whether a raised levy would attach to you.
- What Nostoi cannot decide:
- Nostoi cannot tell you whether a special levy is likely, or who bears one raised around the time of transfer.
What are the conduct rules — on pets, letting, alterations, noise and parking?
Conduct rules bind you from the day you take transfer, and they are the source of most day-to-day surprise. Rules restricting short-term letting, keeping a pet, or altering the exterior are common and entirely enforceable.
- What confirms it:
- The scheme's registered management rules and conduct rules.
- Who to ask:
- The managing agent for the current rules; a conveyancer for what they oblige you to do.
- What Nostoi cannot decide:
- Nostoi cannot interpret a rule, tell you whether an exemption would be granted, or predict how trustees will apply it.
Are the levies on this unit paid up, and is the scheme in dispute or litigation?
Arrears elsewhere in the scheme affect everyone's cash flow. Litigation involving the body corporate can be a substantial contingent cost.
- What confirms it:
- A levy clearance figure from the managing agent; meeting minutes; the conveyancer's searches.
- Who to ask:
- The managing agent, and your conveyancer.
- What Nostoi cannot decide:
- Nostoi cannot see a scheme's account or its legal matters, and would not report on them if it could.
Is this actually sectional title — or share block, life rights, or full title in an estate?
These are legally different things that can look identical from the street. Share block means owning shares in a company that owns the building, with a use agreement — not registered ownership of the unit. Life rights typically means a right to occupy for life, with ownership remaining elsewhere and any refund governed entirely by the contract.
- What confirms it:
- The title deed and the sale agreement establish which form applies.
- Who to ask:
- A conveyancing attorney (the transferring attorney handles the transfer; you may also appoint your own).
- What Nostoi cannot decide:
- Nostoi cannot advise on which ownership form suits you, or interpret a life-rights or share-block contract — those are contract-specific and materially different from ownership.
If a dispute arises, where does it go?
Community scheme disputes in South Africa have a dedicated forum — the Community Schemes Ombud Service — rather than starting in court. Knowing that before you need it is worth something.
- What confirms it:
- The Community Schemes Ombud Service Act and CSOS's own published guidance on the disputes it handles.
- Who to ask:
- CSOS directly, or a conveyancer.
- What Nostoi cannot decide:
- Nostoi cannot tell you whether your dispute falls within CSOS's jurisdiction or how it would be decided.
What this page cannot tell you
- Nostoi cannot tell you whether a scheme is well run; it has no access to scheme documents and does not rate schemes.
- Nostoi cannot interpret any rule, plan or contract for your situation.
- Nostoi cannot predict whether levies will rise, or by how much.
- Nostoi does not report on any named scheme's finances or disputes.
Primary sources
- Sectional Titles Act 95 of 1986 — Establishes sectional title ownership, sections and common property.
- Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011 (STSMA) — Governs bodies corporate, levies, the reserve fund and scheme rules.
- Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011 — Establishes CSOS and the dispute-resolution route for community schemes.
- Share Blocks Control Act 59 of 1980 — Governs share block companies — a different form from sectional title.
- Housing Development Schemes for Retired Persons Act 65 of 1988 — Governs life-right schemes for retired persons.
- Deeds Registries Act 47 of 1937 — Governs registration, title deeds and sectional plans.