Nedbank sells RDP house to cover debt

A 59-YEAR-OLD man and his family are homeless following a bank allegedly selling his RDP house when he battled to pay off his car loan.

Joseph Nkanyani found himself in court with Nedbank, after the bank attached his RDP house in 2012.

Nkanyani and his lawyer Brian Clayton told The Star that he purchased a car with a Nedbank loan, but fell into arrears two years later when he fell ill.

Clayton said the bank then attached and sold his furniture but the money was R61 000 short. To settle the debt, Nkanyani voluntarily returned the car to the bank, which sold it at an auction.

“There was still a balance outstanding apparently and the bank then attached and sold his RDP house.

“At the time of the sale the bank was owed just over R61 000. The property was repossessed by the bank and sold for R140 000,” said Clayton.

“The bank sold Nkanyani’s RDP house which it had valued at R350 000,” Clayton added.

“And he had made renovations and extensions to the house,” said Clayton.

According to Clayton, the property, located in Snake Park, Soweto, remains empty because the community refused to have anyone move in although it was sold in 2015.

“RDPs are built by the municipality and should never be on auction, the bank right now is acting like it’s a bond house, which it is not,” said ward 50’s councillor, Mandla Zulu.

“We are facing a challenge that the RDP houses are being sold off illegally,” said Zulu.

“The community ask me as the councillor, what is happening with this house? If the bank has a matter with Nkanyani they should have sorted it with him and not the house which belongs to the municipality,” said Zulu.

Nedbank’s Zander Bosch confirmed Nkanyani had launched an application to set aside a sale in execution of his house in November 2014.

“The court dismissed his application and ruled in Nedbank’s favour,” said Bosch.

According to Clayton, an appeal process is under way.

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