Bought a property, tenants won’t move out? Here’s what you need to know:
[An Article by: Kim Bam, Managing Director at Bam Law – property24 – 27 Oct 2025]
You’ve just bought a property with vacant occupation, but the previous owner or tenants refuse to move out.
The old South African principle of “Huur Gaat Voor Koop” applies to all properties being sold under normal circumstances with a tenant already in place.
Bam says this principle stipulates that if a lease is signed before the property was legally sold, the lease agreement will survive the sale. What this means is that once the property is registered in the Deeds Office under the new owner’s name, you then become the landlord until the lease agreement term expires.
“Failure to pay rental promptly and in full constitutes a breach of the lease, which entitles the landlord to cancel the lease, evict the tenant and claim arrear rental and damages from the tenant.
“Once the lease agreement has been cancelled it would be recommended to start eviction proceedings immediately as this could be a lengthy process,” says Bam.
Evictions need to be done following the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from and Unlawful Occupation of Land Act, 1998 (PIE Act) the purpose of the PIE Act is on the one hand to provide for the prohibition of illegal eviction and on the other to provide procedures for the eviction of unlawful occupiers.
[REP Note to Property Practitioners:]
Bam says an important condition a buyer can include to protect himself is to agree with the seller that should the tenants not be out on the date of transfer and the buyer has to institute legal action for eviction, the seller will be liable for the cost thereof.
“Another condition a buyer can include is that should the tenants not be out on transfer, the buyer will be entitled to occupational rent from the seller on the agreed amount until the tenants vacate the property.
“It is always advisable to contact an attorney to assist with the eviction,” he advises.
The Original article can be viewed here: → https://tinyurl.com/s47nb2ve