Court dismisses bid to scrap estate fees charged to property practitioners

The Gauteng Division of the High Court in Johannesburg has dismissed an application brought by the Residential Communities Council (NPC) and the Association of Residential Communities CC, which had sought broad relief on fees imposed on property practitioners by residential estates, homeowners' associations, body corporates and governing bodies.

The applicants asked for a declaratory order covering estates and related bodies across the country. The court found they had not established sufficient grounds for the relief sought, and recognised that the lawfulness of the contested conduct depends on the specific circumstances of each case, including the nature of the organisation, the functions it performs, the nature of the fees and the circumstances under which they are imposed.

The court further acknowledged that such practices may, depending on the facts, disadvantage property practitioners, restrict consumer choice and create barriers to entry into the property sector.

Human Settlements Minister Thembi Simelane welcomed the judgment, saying it enables the department, through the Property Practitioners Regulatory Authority, to continue advancing a fair, transparent and inclusive property sector. The PPRA had opposed the application, arguing that fees imposed on property practitioners may constitute an undesirable business practice under Regulation 35 of the Property Practitioners Regulations, 2022, read with sections 62 and 63 of the Property Practitioners Act 22 of 2019.

Simelane said the judgment reinforces the importance of testing practices in the property market against the objectives of the legislative framework, including fair access to the market, consumer protection and transformation of the sector.