My wife and I purchased a property in Se...

Asked by Gavin on 22-06-2022 11:30:16
Question posted in the Property Law category relating to Western Cape

My wife and I purchased a property in September last year. On the house there is a deck which had not yet been approved by council and placed on the house plans. We said we would only look to purchase the property if it was done by the seller. The seller agreed to have this done and it was placed in the Offer to Purchaser sales agreement. 

The sale and transfer of the house was completed in September 2021. After this we enquired with the Attorney Firm whether the house plans had been approved and they confirmed that they had not yet been done but would follow up with the seller. After communication with the seller, he stated that it was not necessary to have the deck approved and placed on the house plans and refused to do so. I have been requesting continual updates on this matter since the sale in September.

I sent the Attorney Firm quotes for the cost to have the deck approved and these were sent again to the seller in April 2022. He does not respond to the Attorney Firm (email or phone calls). From the collection of the quotes, we were also told by the architect that the deck is illegal and will need some additions to be approved by council. Total extra cost could amount to anything between R30 000 - R45000.

Does this justify a breach in sales agreement?

Is it viable for us to take this matter further?

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