Although the contract of sale can be drafted and signed immediately based on a sketch plan or a description of the subdivided land (as long as the land is identifiable the agreement will be valid), the land can only be transferred through registration in the Deeds Office as soon as the sub divisional diagrams have been approved in the Surveyor General’s Office after approval by the Minister of Land Affairs.
This can take up to one year and even longer.
The approval of the sub divisional diagrams should be a suspensive condition in the agreement of sale.
The parties should therefore consult a surveyor to have the diagrams drawn and approved.
