25/03/2020
Dear fellow Estate Agents and Principals
As South Africa is about to enter a total lock down, we are all facing a lot of uncertainty. The one clear thing in this all is that we need to stand together as a nation and abide by the lock down rules. We are a very unique country with its own unique set of challenges. The Covid – 19 Virus however, does not take that into account and will spread by any means possible.
We are entering a time of huge financial turmoil, but do not let that negatively impact on your, or others, health and life. We commend the President of South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa on the exceptional and steadfast stand that he has taken in leading us through this crisis.
In light of the lock down that will be implemented as of 24h00 on 26 March 2020, the following guidelines and ideas might assist you in your business for the next few weeks. Travel will be limited to visits to the shops and medical care. Do not try to take out customers in this time. Being arrested, getting sick or spreading the virus, is just not worth it.
Most deed offices have so far indicated that they will be closing down over this time. So no registrations will be processed.
Deals that are currently in place, can be processed by bond originators and transferring attorneys in the mean time. As long as this is done remotely by means of electronic communications and systems.
As far as new and old tenants and new and old home owners moving in and out, we can only speculate at this time. We cannot see that this kind of movement will be accommodated during the lock down. But again, this is pure speculation.
Should this be prohibited, it might be worthwhile to facilitate negotiations between these parties to find a mutual beneficial agreement. This might take the form of extended occupational rent or extended month to month rental contracts. This will obviously then also stop most of our other actions, like inspections, show houses, etc.
Landlords are also facing tough times as some tenants might be going without any form of income for the next few weeks. Here agents can again play a vital role in talks between tenants and landlords. Agreements where tenants might get a partial or full payment holiday could be suggested. This means that the tenants will catch up on the payments over a period after the lock down. Home owners can also be advised to contact their banks and arrange something similar for their bond repayments. Please just bear in mind that it has an impact on interest and total repayments. One of the main banks has already put such an offer on the table for its clients.
These are uncertain times and uncertain circumstances. These are all suggestions and should first be discussed with your legal council before considered on implemented.
Financial aid or assistance for agents, is something that IEASA is investigating. We are discussing some options with some parties, but not much seems available at this stage. On that note, it is worth mentioning that one of the property portals have waived their fees for April. Maybe other portals will follow suit.
We all know that as agents and principals, there is a tremendous amount of compliance and administration expected from us. Use this time to catch up on CPD point through online courses and get your admin up to date. Stay in contact with your customers and educate them a bit more about real estate through the media. It will make you look so much more professional and knowledgeable. Also work on your marketing campaigns and contact list.
Use this time productively and we could all come out better prepared on the other side. Please like and share our page "Institute of Estate Agents of South Africa" and our website "www.ieasa.org.za" which we will keep updated remotely with relevant news, information and online training.
We wish you all the best in this time ahead.
President and Board of IEASA National
Christo Weilbach
