Property Valuation Bill

The Portfolio Committee on Rural Development and Land Reform invites you to submit written comments on Property Valuation Bill.

The Bill see to:
▪ provide for the establishment, functions and power of the office of the Valuer-General;
▪ provide for appointment and responsibilities of the Valuer-General;
▪ provide for the regulation of the valuation of property that has identified for land reform, as well as property that has been identified for acquisition or disposal by department.

In addition to written submissions, please indicate your interest in making a verbal presentation to the Committee.

Comments can be emailed to Ms Phumla Nyamza at [email protected] by no later than Saturday, 15 February 2014 at 16:00.

Enquiries can be directed to Ms Phumla Nyamza on tel (021) 403 3852 or cell 083 709 8492


Background
"A central feature of the land reform programme has been the acquisition of land on the basis of the 'willing buyer willing seller' (i.e. demand-driven and market-based) model, predominantly based upon the historical value at the time of dispossession. Through this programme, Government has set the target of delivering 30% of commercial agricultural land, or about 25 million hectares, by 2015. To date, only a quarter of the 30% target has been reached. A critical issue in land reform is that of escalating land prices. Escalating land prices have contributed significantly to the slow pace of land redistribution. This has in turn raised questions about the efficacy of the entire market-based land reform process and Government's ability to participate therein without influencing the market and thus the land prices. Questions are increasingly being asked whether market-assisted land reform, based on the principle of willing-buyer-willing-seller, can deliver at the required scale and whether there needs to be greater Government intervention, including more willingness to use expropriation. It has been argued that letting the market alone determine the pace of land reform delivery is not desirable. One of the problems identified in government's implementation of land reform programmes is the issue of valuations. By virtue of the willing-buyer-willing-seller principle, market value principles are applied when government acquires land for land reform purposes. Government is concerned that the principle of market value is not interpreted correctly and applied in a uniform manner. Further, it has become apparent that there is a need to properly analyse and aggressively implement the framework of how to deal with land valuations and the determination of the compensation which should be linked to section 25(3) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996, (''the Constitution''). In order to deal with the challenges outlined above, new legislation is required to give effect to the provisions of the Constitution which provide for land reform and land restitution and to facilitate land reform and land restitution through the valuation of property. The Property Valuation Bill was developed with a view to meet these challenges. The Bill provides for the establishment, functions and powers of the Office of the Valuer-General which will provide a compulsory valuation service in respect of property that has been identified for land reform, as well as a voluntary valuation service to departments for the acquisition or disposal of property. The Office of the Valuer-General will also provide a regulatory service which will entail the setting of criteria and procedures for valuations as well as the monitoring of valuations to ensure compliance."