Bryanston homeowner racks up R800 000 in municipal debt; home goes to auction

0 Bryanston home goes to auction. For illustration purpose. Image: Pexels Home » Lifestyle » Property » Bryanston homeowner racks up R800 000 in municipal debt; home goes to auction

Nothing screams “luxury” like nearly R1 million in municipal debt.

0 Bryanston home goes to auction. For illustration purpose. Image: Pexels A homeowner of an upper-middle-class property in Bryanston faced the unfortunate reality of having their home go to auction today.

According to a recent listing by Absa’s Sale in Execution division, the homeowner’s municipal rates and taxes bill has exceeded R800 000, and they had failed to pay their bond.

The 4-bedroom home on Shepherd Avenue went to auction today with a R6 million reserve.

The auction took place at 11:00 on Wednesday morning at the Randburg South West Sheriff’s Office.

Besides the municipal debt, the owners of the lavish 4-garage property fell into arrears and failed to remedy it before the bank took the matter to court.

Beyond falling into arrears with the bank, the couple also racked up R801 469 in municipal debt.

When the matter went to court, the pair, who had separated, failed to appear.

The husband argued that his financial circumstances had changed and that the bank shouldn’t be allowed to execute the sale.

However, the wife hadn’t been served, and the case was removed from the roll.

Later, judgment was handed down that Absa could execute on the property.

Today, the bank will try to retrieve its losses at auction on the lavish 1 200-square-metre property.

To get the property, any successful bidder would have had to pay R40 000 in Sheriff’s commission.

They would also be required to deposit 10% (R600 000+) into the Sheriff’s trust account.

And then, within 21 business days, the buyer would need to pay the balance on the sale, roughly R5.4 million.

However, the buyer may also have to pay municipal debts once the property transfers into their name.

If the home isn’t sold at auction, Absa will take possession of it. At that point, the property will transfer from a sale in execution to a property in possession.

At the time of writing, Absa has 69 such properties in its possession.

All have failed to sell at auction, and some have been in the bank’s possession for years.

If the bank can’t recoup the bond balance and legal fees when the home eventually sells, the original homeowners may still be on the hook for the difference.

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