In a recent case, the trustees of a complex were in a quandary over whether they could prevent a sectional title owner from having a burly body guard stationed in the corridor outside his front door.
Owning a home in a sectional title complex can sometimes be testing, and issues are bound to arise when people are living in close proximity and sharing common property.
Marina Constas, specialist sectional title attorney, director of BBM Attorneys and co-author of the book ‘Demistifying Sectional Title’, says they were concerned about the safety of other residents, and the negative impression being created by his presence. She says in the end, the owner had to move his personal body guard off the common property and into his home.
Complex rules are also a consistently thorny issue, but what rules can be upheld, and what might be considered unconstitutional? Constas says one conduct rule she encountered stated - no children will be permitted in the complex. If an owner falls pregnant, the trustees will be entitled to request that she leave the complex.
Another stipulated that no woman may be seen kissing visitors in the corridors after 8pm.
Owning a home in a sectional title complex can sometimes be testing, and issues are bound to arise when people are living in close proximity and sharing common property, Constas states.
She concedes that in the current tough economic climate, not everyone can afford legal advice to resolve a tricky dispute. It is for this reason that, as part of BBM Attorneys’ corporate social responsibility programme this year, Constas has dubbed the last week of February ‘Sectional Title Week’, and is offering a free half-hour consultation to sectional title owners.
For more information, call Lola da Costa on 011 622 3622 or via email.
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