How to select a residential stand in urban areas

To guard against being cheated when buying a stand, it is advisable to involve lawyers in the transaction, though this is an additional expense beyond the reach of many.
A person intending to own a house in an urban area has to go through a lot of hassles, some of which require patience, endura-nce and resilience.
Ask yourself:
l Do you want a property that already has title deeds or not?
l Do you want to buy it in a high or low-density suburb?
In his book on advice on buying properties in Zimbabwe, estate agent and valuator Mr Dumisani Manokore says a property without title deeds costs less than that with the document.
One has to be on council housing waiting list to buy a stand from a local authority, and this has to be renewed yearly.
According to Mr Manokore, the most important thing to know when handling a property with no title deeds is to establish the reason why such is the case.
Some of the reasons are easy to deal with while others might be costly, illegal and complicated.
l Maybe the developer has not complied with all the local authority planning requirements, such as putting up culverts, roads, and water and sewer reticulation.
l Sometimes a seller has not applied for title deeds (normally the case in high-density areas).
l The seller may owe local authority money.
Another hurdle is dealing with a cessation.
This refers to a transfer of rights and obligations in a property from a seller to a buyer when the property being sold has no title deeds.
According to Mr Manokore, this is a legal way of changing ownership practiced by many developers and local authorities in Zimbabwe.
Local authorities can proffer advice on how to go about the process.
Mr Manokore says if the property being sold is vacant, the seller has to develop it first.
The cost of cession in Harare is about US$300 while Chitungwiza town council charges five percent of the selling price.
Mr Manokore, however, warns people from against buying un-serviced stands, regardless of how cheap they may appear to be.