Missing Beneficiary | Widowed | Legal proof exists
Case scenario: Information gathered from the HSS and during the occupancy survey confirms that the occupant is a beneficiary but also that there was a co-beneficiary. Data from the occupancy survey and from Home Affairs shows that the co-beneficiary is no longer alive (e.g. a spouse has died). In these cases, the property is transferred to the surviving beneficiary / spouse.
Where the deceased co-beneficiary was a spouse, the surviving spouse needs to provide the following documents:
ID of the deceased
Marriage certificate
Death certificate
Will (if available)
Where the co-beneficiary was not a spouse, the surviving beneficiary needs to provide the following documents:
ID of the deceased
Death certificate
Masters letters of authority
Proceed to the Core Registration Process
The housing authority has inspected the divorce order but there is no reference to the property. In this case, the housing authority must attempt to make contact with or trace the beneficiary who is not in occupation.
The housing authority must inform both beneficiaries that the divorce order does not reference the property, and must request that the beneficiaries reach a settlement as to what should happen. The beneficiaries need to specify this settlement in writing and sign it in front of two witnesses.
Once a settlement has been reached and the settlement document has been forwarded to the housing authority, transfer can proceed in line with the settlement agreement.
What role should the housing authority play in helping divorced parties reach a settlement? The housing authority has no official mandate to assist parties to reach an agreement and may not have the capacity or skills to facilitate this interaction. However, the housing authority should refer beneficiaries to family lawyers or counselling services that operate in the area. Some options include Family Law Clinic (http://www.familylawclinic.org.za/legalhelp.html) and (add others)
Information gathered from the HSS confirms that the occupant is a beneficiary but shows that there was a co-beneficiary who was married to the beneficiary. Data from the occupancy survey indicates that the beneficiary and co-beneficiary are now divorced.
During the occupancy survey the beneficiary in occupation must provide the following documents:
Spouse ID
Marriage certificate
Divorce Order
The divorce order must be reviewed to establish the status of the property. There are two options
The divorce order specifies what should happen to the property
Divorce orders granted where there is no property deed, because primary transfer is outstanding, are not obligated to mention the subsidy house, so it is not always referenced.
The Beneficiary in occupation indicates that s/he was married at the time the subsidy was granted, but is now divorced.
Beneficiary must provide the following documents:
Spouse ID
Marriage certificate
Divorce Order
The divorce order is reviewed and the property is mentioned
Proceed to registration - Core Registration Process
See the alternate process for if The divorce order does not mention the property
This section covers cases where one or more co-beneficiaries is not in occupation of the property and is no longer regarded as an owner of the property. This typically occurs because: