Cape Town – Over 52 title deeds have been handed to residents of Blue Downs by Human Settlements MEC Tertius Simmers.
The handover was made through the department’s Enhanced Extended Discounted Benefit Scheme (EEDBS), introduced to assist residents to acquire ownership of pre-1994
government-owned rental housing.
The event in Blue Downs forms part of the provincial department’s strategic goal to prioritise the housing needs of the elderly.
“I shared tears of joy with the 52 recipients. The event allowed us to ensure that 52 people become
fully-fledged, legal homeowners. The) handover is yet another clear demonstration of the Western Cape government’s commitment to restoring dignity and creating a better life for the people of this province,” said Simmers.
The 52 beneficiaries are from areas including Electric City, Malibu Village, Tuscany Glen, The Conifers, Hillcrest Heights and Eersterivier.
The residents benefited through the EEDBS programme as sale agreements with debtors who did not honour their agreements were cancelled.
Properties were thus sold to the current, qualifying occupants and, where this was not possible, a debt write-off was implemented.
Magdalene Newman, 82, said: “I feel very happy and I would like to thank the MEC for giving me my title deed. I will never forget this day, as this is truly a special day and this property is for me and my family.”
Simmers said the department was busy with phase 2 of the Blue Downs title deed project, and more people would become homeowners when it was completed.
“We will continue striving towards establishing an enabling environment so that we are better-placed to grant beneficiaries security of tenure
and make more residents legal homeowners by handing over these title deeds,” Simmers said.