Highlights from our Property Practitioners Act webinar

18 February 2022 | Zerlinda van der Merwe

On 17 February 2022, we hosted a webinar with our colleague in the industry, Leigh-Anne Harrison of RPA Property Administrators, as our guest speaker. Leigh-Anne presented on the much anticipated Property Practitioners Act 22 of 2019 (PPA) and its effect on managing agents.

If you were not able to attend this webinar, you can access the recording and slides by clicking here.

At the outset, it is important to note that managing agents are considered to be property practitioners for purposes of the PPA, which commenced effective 1 February 2022, the deadline for compliance is 31 October 2022, we assume there could be possible extension/s if the POPIA and PAIA exercise was anything to go by.

The PPA replaces the Estate Agency Affairs Act and the Property Practitioners Regulatory Authority (PPRA) replaces the Estate Agency Affairs Board. What an institution that was, and what a huge change this is to the property sector.

Each property practitioner must apply, via the PPRA, for a fidelity fund certificate (FFC). The FFC must be made available, by the PPRA, to such applicant property practitioner between 30 - 55 working days of the application being made, and must be made available within 10 days of a written request - this is quite a strange proviso as there is a timeline provided, which makes one wonder if the timelines will be adhered to. Should there be a delay, a property practitioner must be able to provide proof of payment for such FFC in order to practice, and should no such application and/or payment have been made and no FFC received, penalties may be applied. This applies to the managing agency as well as all employees.

A further requirement is that each property practitioner, in this instance being the managing agency, will require tax clearance and BEE certificates, have a trust bank account and their accounts audited. The Code of Conduct to be followed by the property practitioner, as managing agent, intended to form part of the Community Schemes Ombud Service Act 9 of 2011, is set out in the PPA.

As with most things in life, exemptions do apply. These exemptions are:

  • if the property practitioner does not, or no longer, receipts trust money;

  • the funds of the body corporate are held in the name of the body corporate, and

  • the turnover of the property practitioner is below a certain threshold.

Please contact us at TVDM Consultants on info@tvdmconsultants.com or 061 536 3138 for our service offerings in this regard.

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