In many cases, buyers and renters of Sectional Title properties have had the rather unpleasant surprise of being told, upon moving in, that the community scheme has a ‘no pets’ policy. This has led to anxiety and unnecessary conflict.
Estate agents in South Africa are governed primarily by the Estate Agency Affairs Act (now the Property Practitioners Act) and the Consumer Protection Act (CPA), but neither statute expressly requires an agent to pro‑actively hand over a scheme’s Conduct Rules to a prospective purchaser. Instead, the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act (STSMA) places the duty to make those rules available squarely on the body corporate itself:
STSMA, s 10(6) obliges a body corporate “to have the scheme’s rules available for inspection at trustee and owner meetings, and to deliver copies of the rules to all owners and occupiers of sections.” There is no parallel provision in the Estate Agency legislation placing that duty on estate agents.
Under the Property Practitioners Act (formerly the Estate Agency Affairs Act) and its Code of Conduct, agents must market and show property accurately and “must not use harmful or misleading marketing techniques,” but the Code does not list Conduct Rules among the statutory documents they must proactively supply.
That said, the Consumer Protection Act does require a supplier (including a seller or agent acting as supplier) to disclose all material facts about the property and to correct any misapprehension by the buyer. A blanket “no pets” rule in the Conduct Rules would almost certainly be a material fact influencing a buyer’s decision, so failing to point it out – if known – could contravene the CPA’s prohibition on withholding material information.
From Schindlers Attorneys:
“The duty of an estate agent with regards to the issue of disclosures is set out in Regulation 34.3.2 of the Property Practitioners Act, 2019. (Previously Clause 4.1 of the Estate Agency Affairs Board Code of Conduct).
Regulation 34.3.2.1 provides that an estate agent shall convey to a purchaser or lessee all facts as are, or should reasonably in the circumstances be, within his personal knowledge and which are, or could be material to a prospective purchaser (or lessee).
If the obligation in Regulation 34.3.2.1 is broken down, there are four main requirements:
- The estate agent must disclose facts which are within the estate agent’s knowledge, i.e. facts in respect of which the agent has actual knowledge;
- The estate agent must disclose facts which should be within their knowledge i.e. if the estate agents hold themselves out to be the area specialist, they need to be aware of issues affecting the area such as new roads planned or new hospitals etc;
- The estate agent must disclose facts which are material to purchasers. This implies that the estate agent should disclose facts which are known to be material to the purchaser;
- The estate agent should disclose facts which could be material to a purchaser. This requires wider disclosure and a broad exercise of this discretion.”
Why it should be a prerequisite
- Consumer protection
Material restrictions on the use and enjoyment of a property – like a ban on pets – clearly affect its marketability and value. If the CPA obliges agents to disclose material facts, then including a summary of Conduct Rules in the mandatory Disclosure Document required under the Property Practitioners Act (Reg 34.3.4.5.2) would squarely fulfil that duty.
- Best practice and transparency
Even absent an express statutory duty, it is industry best practice for agents to provide buyers with all the key governance documents (including Conduct and Management Rules) with the written offer, so that purchasers can withdraw or adjust their offer in time. In sectional‑title conveyancing the purchaser has a 14‑day cooling‑off period after receiving the rules pack; giving buyers access via the agent up front simply smooths the process.
- Legislative or regulatory amendment
To close the gap, Parliament or the Estate Agency Affairs Board (EAAB) could amend either:
The Property Practitioners Act’s mandatory Disclosure Document form, to include a checkbox (and attachment) for the scheme’s Conduct Rules, or
The EAAB Code of Conduct itself, to require agents to deliver or offer the Conduct Rules at the outset of marketing.
In summary, while current South African legislation does not explicitly obligate estate agents to hand over a sectional‑title scheme’s Conduct Rules to prospective buyers, both consumer‑protection principles and good practice strongly support making this a formal prerequisite. Incorporating a specific Conduct‑Rules disclosure into the mandatory Disclosure Document would ensure that buyers are fully informed – and spare everyone the risk of a last‑minute pet‑ban “surprise.”
