TITLE DEEDS - AMENDMENT OF REGULATIONS TO DEEDS REGISTRIES ACT

Where a title deed is lost, destroyed and a duplicate original is required, the registered holder must apply to the Registrar of Deeds by means of a written application, accompanied by an affidavit, setting out the circumstances under which it was lost or destroyed.

The Applicant must also publish a notification of intention to apply for such certified copy, in the prescribed form, in an issue of a newspaper circulating in the area in which the land is situated.

(Government Gazettes are not widely read so the Board decided to provide for publication in a newspaper circulating in the area in which the property is situated, and not in a Government Gazette.)

Copies of deeds must lie open for inspection in the deeds registry for a period of two weeks from the date of publication of the notice to enable any interested person to object to the issue of a copy. Any objections must be lodged in writing to the relevant Registrar of Deeds within that two-week period.

Lost mortgage bonds and notarial bonds which are to be cancelled will have to be dealt with in a similar manner. (Notification of the intention to apply for a certified copy of the bond be published and not notification of the intention to cancellation of the bond itself.)

Sellers should therefore urgently advise the Conveyancer, perhaps even well before the property is placed on the market for sale, where the title deeds are lost or damaged, in order for a duplicate original to be obtained so as not to delay the transfer process.

See also:

Title deeds new regulations

The Property Sector Transformation Code: Estate agent’s take note

(This article is provided for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. For more information on the topic, please contact the author/s or the relevant provider.)