Plea to the president of South Africa for all real estate services to be included under Level four of the schedule of services to be phased in as per the COVID-19 Risk Adjusted Strategy
- Target:
- South African Government
- Region:
- South Africa
- Website:
- www.gov.za
The draft framework for the schedule of services to be phased in as per the COVID-19 risk adjusted strategy (Permitted goods, services and movement) makes provision for Commercial real estate to be permitted under level three and all real estate activities to be permitted under level two.
Real estate practitioners or estate agents, include approximately fifty thousand individuals that rely solely on commission as their source of income, which they cannot earn without being able to work, which has been the case under level 5 of the national lockdown. Furthermore, these practitioners are unable to claim from the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF) and, therefore, are unable to support their families during this time.
Due to the national lockdown people have been confined to their homes, but due to the closure of the deeds office and halting of real estate industry services, many people have been caught in a state of limbo when they were unable to conclude transactions, and are left uncertain as to when they will be able to move into their homes. Many have been forced to move in with others during lockdown while waiting for their transactions to be finalised, making them essentially “homeless” whilst they await the go-ahead to move into their homes. Considering shelter is a necessity for human life, the ability to provide people with this shelter should be considered an essential service, which requires the both the opening of the deeds office and for the operation of all real estate practitioners.
Taxes generated as a result of real estate transactions such as Transfer Duty, Capital Gains Tax (CGT), Value Added Tax (VAT), Pay As Your Earn (PAYE), Estate Duty, Donations Tax, etc together with taxes generated in the form of Income Tax from Companies, Small Business Corporations and Turnover Tax for Micro Businesses in the real estate sector will most certainly provide inflow of critical revenue into the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and in turn into state coffers which will be vital for the state’s efforts in providing nationwide relief to people and businesses during this crisis.
https://www.gov.za/sites/default/files/gcis_documents/2020%2004%2025%20Permitted%20goods%2C%20services%20and%20movement%20%28Public%20Version%29.pdf
We the undersigned, petition to include all real estate services under Level four of the draft framework for the schedule of services to be phased in as per the COVID-19 risk adjusted strategy (Permitted goods, services and movement). The draft, as it stands, only allows for commercial real estate to be permitted under level three and all real estate activities to be permitted under level two, while the deeds office is currently permitted to operate under level four.
Based on our belief that these services are essential and as these services go hand in hand with the services of the deeds office, it is therefore clear that these services should logically be allowed to operate at the same level as the deeds office. This will not only provide relief to thousands of individuals, but will also allow provide inflow of critical revenue into the South African Revenue Service (SARS) and in turn into state coffers which will be vital for the state’s efforts in providing nationwide relief to people and businesses during this crisis.
The operation of real estate practitioners does not require the gathering of large numbers of people and does not require any physical contact between the people involved, and these services can be performed under strict hygienic conditions, including the distribution and wearing of masks and provision of hand sanitizers whilst ensuring adequate social distancing measures at all times. Real estate practitioners can continue to operate remotely from their homes and not in their companies offices.
Sincerely,
Stakeholders in the real estate industry
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The Plea to the president of South Africa for all real estate services to be included under Level four of the schedule of services to be phased in as per the COVID-19 Risk Adjusted Strategy petition to South African Government was written by Currin Property Group and is in the category Real Estate & COVID-19 Risk Adjusted Strategy at GoPetition.