A summary of stakeholders and their roles across the process is illustrated in the Stakeholder Matrix below using the RACI framework. This framework identifies stakeholders who are either responsible for completing a task, accountable for ensuring the task gets done, consulted to get feedback or because the work will impact directly on them, or informed about the process and outcomes.
Stakeholders include:
Members of the public
Various government departments
Private sector players
The project team
Each stakeholder category is described in more detail:
The Housing Authority is the provincial or municipal entity (typically in the Human Settlements Department) that is accountable for the entire outcome of the process. That means that they have oversight over all the actors that are responsible for any step of the process and must hold them to account for key outcomes. The Housing Authority also makes decisions and offers guidance when required through all process phases.
The list of project beneficiaries is recorded on the Human Settlement System (HSS). This data must be extracted off the HSS during the data collection phase of the project.
In addition, new subsidy applications that are made during the process will go through the HSS.
Information from the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) is necessary to identify the respondent and match them to the beneficiary list. The ID number and proof of identity is always required. In addition, information and certificates are also required from the DHA to support the property transfer process. This includes data required to determine if beneficiaries are deceased.
When cases are validated, additional data or supporting documents may be required from the DHA.
In addition, given that a number of months may have passed between initial data gathering and lodgement at the deeds office, conveyancers must re-confirm that the transferees are still alive before they lodge.
This is an optional stakeholder that may be engaged where the process requires it. SASSA data may be useful to assist housing authorities in tracing and contacting beneficiaries during the validation phase. Ideally there should be an agreement (such as a Memorandum of Understanding) between the Housing Authority and SASSA on how beneficiary tracing will be conduced.
It is useful to have the support of local councillors who can assist with engaging the community at the start of the Data Collection phase of the project and support awareness raising activities that are conducted within the community about the project. In addition, the local councillor may wish to stay informed about progress throughout the project.
The Deeds Office is engaged once the property is read for transfer as a final steps in the Validation, Regularisation & Transfer phase.
When one or more beneficiaries is deceased, the estate must be reported to the master's office.
When an occupancy survey is conduced, the occupant of the property is consulted in order to complete the survey. At the same time supporting documents are collected. Supplying the necessary documents is the responsibility of the occupant / beneficiary.
Should further information be required in order to move toward deed registration, it is the responsibility of beneficiaries or occupants to provide this information.
The recipient of the subsidy property must also sign the Sales Agreement and provide necessary documents and certificates to support lodgement at the Deeds office.
Once the title deed is issued the owner must accept the title deed for the property and is responsible for keeping the document safe. In addition, it is strongly recommended that the owner prepare a will if he or she does not already have one.
At the start of the enumeration process, the community must be made aware that enumerators will be going door to door in the area to collect data to enable the property transfer process. This may include informative meetings or distribution of notices in other media to let the community know what is happening and why. This step is aimed at getting community support for the project.
Where beneficiaries are alive but cannot be contacted, housing authorities may be required to advertise in a newspaper or on a digital platform to notify beneficiaries to come forward.
In some cases there may be a public event with a press briefing when title deeds are handed over. In other cases, housing authorities may issue a press release to inform the public that title deeds have been handed over in a given area.
The project team includes employees at the Housing Authority who are responsible for extracting, collating and overseeing the collecting data process, categorising, validating and following up on cases, preparing and signing sales agreements, engaging and managing conveyancers and handing out title deeds.
Ideally a dedicated, experienced team should conduct these activities. While the team structure and size may vary depending on the number of projects and properties to be transferred, it will typically include the following roles:
Team manager: Responsible for signing sale agreements, accountable for the process and the performance of the team and all service providers
Data manager: Responsible for extracting, collating and collecting all data required to support the process. Accountable for the performance of fieldwork teams who conduct occupancy surveys. The data manager is responsible for ensuring that all data is safely secured and accessible for analysis
Data analyst: Responsible for analysing data to categorise cases, preparing reports on throughput
Case worker: Responsible for following up on cases and ensuring that all necessary processes are followed to enable property transfer
This is an optional stakeholder that may be engaged in some cases. Housing Authorities may wish to partner with banks to trace or locate missing beneficiaries during the validation process.
In addition, the regularisation process may require non-qualifiers to pay the Housing Authority to formalise an informal purchase. Some households may require finance from a bank or other lender to raise required funds.
This is an optional stakeholder that may be engaged in some cases to trace or locate missing beneficiaries during the validation process.
The conveyancer is required by law to lodge the transfer. The conveyancer prepares transfer documents, lodges the matter with the deeds office, collects the issued title deed, confirm that all details on the title deed are correct and rectifies any errors prior to handover to the owner.
