How To Transfer Property To Another Person?

Generally, in order to transfer property to another person, that person would actually have to buy it from the owner of the property. Today, we will briefly discuss this method i.e. buying/ selling of the property.

Ps: we will discuss other ways of transferring properties in another article.

General guideline

Question:
Who can be a party to a property transfer transaction?

Answer:

1. Anyone who can legally buy a house- anyone who is 18 and above.
2. Anyone who is not bankrupt.

Question:
How can one know more about the property that they are about to receive from the transfer?

Answer:

Do a land search at the relevant land office.

Why? This will allow potential buyers to know certain relevant information such as:

1. Whether the land is subjected to any restrictions, such as where the owner of the land or the seller cannot deal with the land unless he has first obtained consent from the State Authority to do so.
2. Whether the owner or proprietor of the estate land has obtained consent from the Estate Land Board to sell the estate land.
3. Whether the land is subjected to a charge.

Question:
What are some of the documents involved in this process?

Answer:

Generally:

1. The sale and purchase agreement that has been executed and stamped between a buyer and seller
2. The previous sale and purchase agreement of the property;
3. The executed Memorandum of Transfer (MOT);
4. The Quit Rent payment receipt of the current year;
5. The latest Assessment Tax payment receipt;
6. The original land title;
7. Deed of Assignment (in cases where the land title has not yet been issued to the seller).

Question:
What else the seller needs to know?

Answer:

Check whether he needs to pay real property gain tax (RPGT), a form of capital gain tax imposed by the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) when the seller makes a profit from selling a property.

*However, do note that the Malaysian government has since introduced myriads of exemptions for people who are planning to sell their properties, provided that certain criteria are met.

Question:
What are the relevant processes involved in this?

Answer:

1. Enter into an agreement with the seller (via the signing of a letter of offer);
2. Obtain a bank loan (unless you are filthy rich);
3. Sign the Sales and Purchase Agreement (SPA);
4. Sign facility agreement i.e. agreement with your bank in regards to the loan you borrowed from them;
5. Sign MOT and other relevant legal documents;
6. Obtain keys to the property.

Question:
How long does it take to transfer a property?

Answer:

Generally, about three months from the signing of the SPA between parties. However, depending on the circumstances (such as removing encumbrances to the land, discharging a land charge, or obtaining consent from the State Authority), the process might last more than 6 months.

Parties involved and some pointers in regards to the parties involved

A. Vendor i.e. seller

• It is prudent to ascertain who owns the property. If the seller already has the title, check with the land office to ascertain the ownership of the property. If the seller does not have the title (such as in the case of an owner of a high-rise property, check with the developer if they are still holding on to the title (i.e. master title).

B. Purchaser i.e. buyer

• Ensure that the buyer is eligible to purchase a property, as mentioned above. The buyer must also have the means of buying the property, such as being able to obtain loan from a bank to fund the purchase.

C. Vendor’s lawyer

• Some of the duties of a vendor’s lawyer:

4. Ensure buyer pays the purchase price of the property according to the stipulated dates in the SPA;
5. Assist seller in paying the RPGT;
6. Where there are restrictions to transfer, apply for consent from the relevant parties;
7. Deliver the title of the property to the buyer’s lawyer accordingly.

D. Purchaser’s lawyer

• Some of the duties of a purchaser’s lawyer:

1. Prepare the relevant legal documents for execution (SPA, Memorandum of Transfer (MOT), entry and withdrawal of private caveats, RPGT, etc.);
2. Register the executed MOT;
3. Once the buyer makes full payment, register the title of the property in the name of the buyer.

E. Vendor’s bank

• Assuming the property is being charged to the bank (by reason of the seller obtaining a loan from the bank and the bank holding the title as security until the loan is fully paid), the bank would then have to prepare a discharge of charge (once the loan is settled via seller paying the remainder of the bank obtaining the remainder from the new transaction). A Deed of Receipt and Reassignment (DRR) will be given out as proof that the loan has been settled. 

F. Purchaser’s bank

• Assuming the buyer obtained a loan to purchase the property, the bank would then prepare a charging document and hold the title as security to the loan until the loan is fully paid up by the buyer.

G. Government Agencies

Some of the government agencies that are involved (and their duties) are as follow:

1. Land Office- for land search, registration of caveat, & MOT, collection of land title.
2. IRB- a collection of capital gain tax (RPGT) and stamp duty.
3. Insolvency Department- for bankruptcy search to ensure neither party is bankrupt.
4. Jabatan Penilaian & Perkhidmatan Harta Malaysia (JPPH)- Agency that evaluates the land for RPGT and stamps duty calculation purposes.
5. Local Authorities- to obtain consent for the transfer of title.

And there you have it. Hopefully, it helps!!