Property buyers being sold fake title deeds

The Office of the Chief Registrar of Deeds in the Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs in Zimbabwe has expressed concern over the bulk of cases the economic crimes courts have to deal with concerning fake documentation and the sale of non-existent stands and houses.

The office has warned potential property buyers against blindly purchasing properties without verifying the authenticity of the documents.

"Members of the public are hereby warned that there have been cases of potential buyers of immovable property being persuaded to part with their hard-earned income through fraudulent transactions.

"To convince potential purchasers, conmen are producing fake title deeds with their names on them so as to convince buyers that the property is registered in their names," the office said in a statement.
The Chief Registrar of Deeds' Office has since advised immovable property buyers to first verify the authenticity of the sales and the documents involved before making any payments.
"To safeguard oneself from possible loss, members of the public are advised to do the following before parting with their money:

    Ensure that the Estate Agent they are dealing with is registered with the Estate Agents Council as required by the Estate Act (Chapter 27:03)

    Seek professional assistance of a practising legal practitioner

    Conduct a search in the Deeds Office in terms of Section 9 of the Deeds Registries Act (Chapter 20:05) to search in the following:

    The authenticity of the documents presented to you.

    The rightful registered owner of the property

    Any third party interested against the property," read the statement.

A legal expert, Mr Wellington Pasipanodya of Manase and Manase law firm, said when buying property, the safest way is to go through registered estate agents and registered law firms before payment is made.
"Potential property buyers are advised to approach reputable and registered law firms with registered lawyers and registered conveyancers.

"They can also make use of registered estate agents. These professionals would carry out their own investigations on the authenticity of the documents.
"They also research to establish the true identity of the person purporting to sell the property. Chances of the potential buyers being duped under those circumstances are minimal.
"Such professionals go to university to master the trade of selling and registering property," said Mr Pasipanodya.

Mrs Sibongile Muchinenyika, a property sales consultant with Autohomes Real Estate, said it was safer to deal with registered estate agents.
She said in the event that one loses his or her money in a transaction involving a registered agent, the Estate Agents Council might refund the buyer and later deal with the agent.

"Dealing with a registered agent, you are assured of a genuine deal. Fly-by-night bogus agents may just disappear from the offices soon after receiving a client's money but that is different from a registered agent.
"If the deal gets sour, the purchaser may claim his or her lost money from the Estate Agents Council, hence losses are minimal," she said.

Mrs Muchinenyika said funds to purchase a property are deposited in a trust account and can only be released to the seller after all verifications and ownership transfers have been finalised.
"If the property has title deeds, we go through the deeds office to verify the authenticity of the documents. At times we engage the services of lawyers for deeds search.

"If the property is still council property, we ensure cession is complete before payment is effected," she said.
CID spokesperson Detective Inspector Augustine Zimbili said: "Cases of fraud involving fake title deeds and identity particulars are on the increase and people should be very careful.
"People are innocently paying thousands of dollars to conmen who do not own the properties in question."

The advent of technology, he said, required a lot of verification before one buys a property.
"To an ordinary person it may be very difficult for him or her to distinguish fake title deeds from genuine ones.
"There is need for potential buyers to check with the deeds office to see if the seller is really the property owner. There is also need to check if the title deeds are genuine or not," he said.

Detective Insp Zimbili said some conmen use fake identity documents bearing names of the property owners, but the police were prepared to assist in vetting the seller's fingerprints to determine if he or she is the property owner.
"Our offices are also open. We go an extra mile trying to assist the public by vetting the fingerprints of the seller before the deal is sealed to minimise fraud," said Detective Insp Zimbili.

He warned people against buying properties that are still under the ownership of local authorities.
"Such properties will still be under local authorities and they do not have title deeds. There is need to check with the relevant offices before parting with one's hard-earned cash," he said.