When you intend to make structural alterations to your unit there is a procedure prescribed by the Act that should be complied with before you start with the alterations. Any alterations that extend the boundaries or floor area of the unit will be seen as an extension. Residents in a sectional title scheme are subject to the rules and regulations of the body corporate. These rules and regulations are governed by the Sectional Titles Act.

Step One:
The Act stipulates that you should first obtain the consent of the body corporate. Usually the trustees will hold a general meeting and the members must pass a special resolution to agree to the alterations. You will require the consent of 75 percent of the owners who are present at the meeting for the special resolution to be passed. This, however, could be time-consuming as the members have to be notified of the meeting thirty days in advance. Alternatively, you can also obtain a special resolution by approaching all the owners individually and obtaining the consent of 75% of the owners.

Step Two:
Once the body corporates consent has been obtained, plans of the extension should be drawn up and approved by the local authority.

Step Three:
A land surveyor should be appointed to draw up new sectional title plans of the scheme to incorporate the extension. These plans have to be approved by the surveyor general.

Step Four:
Consult with your attorney who will submit the necessary application for the registration of the amended sectional title plan. If the unit is bonded the attorney will have to obtain consent from the mortgagee of the unit.
Along with the application to the Deeds Office a transfer duty receipt from SARS must be lodged based on the increase in value of the property. It is advisable to obtain two estates agents; valuations based on the pre- and post-alterations value of the property.
The surveyor must stipulate on the sectional title plan that there is not a deviation of more than 10 percent in the participation quota of the unit as a result of the alterations. If there is a deviation of more than 10 percent, the attorney must obtain the consent of the mortgagees of each and every unit in the Scheme. It is very important that sectional title owners adhere to the legalities as an omission could cause extensive delays when the property is sold.

References:

• Section 24 of the Sectional Titles Act
• Sectional Titles, Share Blocks and Time Sharing, Vol 1, Prof CG vd Merwe
• Demystifying Sectional Title, M Constas and K Bleijs
• Sectional Title on Tap, Vol 1, Tertius Maree

• Article by J Paddock
• Article by Rob White