RDP HOUSE SALES FRENZY GRIPS TOWNSHIP

RESIDENTS of Nellmapius, north of Pretoria, have been gripped by a frenzy of RDP house sales, with both owners and syndicates cashing in on the demand.

Low-cost houses, formerly known as RDP houses, are becoming sought after and fetch prices of between R70 000 to R180 000.

This has created a market where crafty homeowners can make a quick buck – and syndicates and building highjacking have risen to an alarming level.

At a meeting last week, commu- nity members in Nellmapius discussed ways to halt the operations of syndicates who are targeting child-headed homes, homes of widowers and abandoned houses.

The rise in sales is not unique to this community. Websites such as Gumtree, OLX and Junk Mail have numerous entries, mostly in Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and Western Cape.

According to the Housing Act, a state-funded home can be sold only after eight years of ownership and the owner is not allowed to lease it.

These houses are sold illegally, meaning that the buyer never gets the title deed. This is tricky, and some of the sellers have been known to renege and demand their houses back without compensation.

Police in Nellmapius have had to intervene on a number of occasions when the rightful owners had been swindled out of their homes.

“Some people are signing police affidavits thinking that equates to a legal purchase of the property. That is incorrect. Without a title deed, the house still belongs to the owner, or his benefactors,” said MEC Jacob Mamabolo ’ s spokesperson Motsamai Motlhaolwa.