Homebuyers: Don't pay anything before you check this

Homebuyers need to exercise caution when transferring a deposit or any part of the purchase price into a bank account that supposedly belongs to an attorney firm or an estate agency. As this case reported by IOL this week reveals, it is all too easy for a bogus agent to interpose themselves between a buyer and seller or between a buyer a a transferring attorney and divert buyers' funds to their own accounts. Read more: https://bit.ly/416BaTx

Buyers should always check personally with the agency or attorney that they have been given the correct bank account number before parting with any money. And they should of course never give their own banking passwords or pin numbers to anyone else.

In addition, buyers should always ask anyone acting as an estate agent to produce their current Fidelity Fund Certificate issued by the Property Practioners Regulatory Authority, or check that agent's or agency's name against the PPRA database of registered agents on the website https://theppra.org.za/.

It is important to note that if you deal with a bogus agent who is not registered and has no FFC, you will not enjoy the protection of the Fidelity Fund, and will stand to lose any money that has been misappropriated.

19 Feb 2025
Author Chas Everitt

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Homebuyers: Don't pay anything before you check this