Although the developer of the collapsed building in George has agreed to refund buyers’ deposits for apartments, the purchase contracts will not be cancelled just yet, Cape {town} Etc reports.
Also read: Three months on, no answers in George building collapse
According to one of the buyers, who wished to remain anonymous, buyers received no communication from the developer, Neo Victoria Developments, or their conveyancing attorneys, Miltons Matsemela Oosthuizen Inc.
The building, located on Victoria Street, collapsed on 6 May, resulting in the death of 34 construction workers. At the time, 81 were on-site. An inquest into the death of the workers is ongoing.
‘There are no timeframes attached to the matter. The case docket will be sent to the National Prosecuting Authority upon conclusion of the police investigation for a decision. Due to the nature of the probe, we’re unable to divulge any further information at this stage,’ provincial police spokesperson Sergeant Christopher Spies said.
Three months later, buyers of apartments that the building was meant to house became worried about their deposits.
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The anonymous buyer said she could not obtain information from the estate agents from whom she bought her unit because the estate agents were ‘not allowed to talk to the buyers’.
‘We, the buyers, were also prohibited from speaking to the media.’
According to the George Herald, there were 47 units in the building. ‘Before the collapse, I learned from the estate agent that all the flats had been sold,’ the buyer added.
A few days after the newspaper sent a query to Miltons (the conveyancer) about the deposits and purchase contracts, the anonymous buyer said she received a letter from them in which the conveyancers stated that all deposits and interests would be refunded on the instruction of their client.
According to the letter, the developer was in negotiations with ‘the insurance company and the building contractor’.
Miltons also stated that Neo Victoria Developments did not consent to any cancellations of the existing deeds of sale.
‘We can therefore still be forced to buy property from the developer at a later stage, but who wants to have anything to do with them after all that has happened,’ the anonymous buyer said.
‘To be bound like this is unfair. No trust relationship remains and as far as I am concerned; the flats that were a luxury investment of R1.8 million for a two-bedroom unit, are now worthless because of what has happened.’
According to the purchase contract, the developer undertook to ‘construct the Property in accordance with national building regulations, other relevant statutory requirements relating to construction work and substantially in accordance with the annexures’.
The annexures refer to the location plan, layout and building plan and the construction time-frame.
‘According to the contract, it is the developer’s responsibility to appoint the contractors, etc, in accordance with industry standards.’
The newspaper reached out to Ryan du Preez, the conveyancing attorney who has been speaking to the media on behalf of the developer since the incident and Theuns Kruger, the owner of the Laitel Developments construction company.
Neither have responded.
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Picture: George Municipality