How can I find out what is happening with my late mother’s house, where my cousin had been staying with her?

The long answer

If your mother died without making a will, the Intestate Succession Act would apply. That means that her descendants would be first in line to inherit her property. You would be ahead of your cousin as you are a direct descendant of your mother.

Perhaps you need to find out first if her death was reported. A death must be reported within 14 days to the Master’s Office, and then a deceased estate comes into being, where all bank accounts and property belonging to your mother is frozen until a person is given the letter of authority by the Master (if the property is valued at less than R50,000) or the executor is appointed by the Master (if the property is valued at over R250,000). 

The person with the letter of authority or the executor must open a new bank account in the name of the deceased estate and pay any outstanding debts before seeing that the rightful heirs inherit. The letter of authority or being appointed as an executor does not give that person any rights over the property. Their duty is to wind up the deceased estate. 

To be given the letter of authority, a person must be nominated by family members. Is it possible that your cousin was nominated by family members to wind up your mother’s estate? As a child who should inherit her mother’s house when she came of age, you should have been registered as a minor heir in the Master’s Guardian Fund. Each Master has its own Guardian Fund. 

The Department of Justice says: 

• "The purpose of the Guardian’s Fund is to protect the funds of minors, persons lacking legal competence and capacity, known or unknown, absent as well as untraceable heirs.
• It is important to note that money which remains unclaimed in the Guardian’s Fund for a period of 30 years as from the date, upon which the person became entitled to claim it, is forfeited to the state. When the Master receives or accepts any money, he/she must open an account in the books of the Guardian’s Fund in the name of the person to whom the money belongs or the estate of which that money forms part.
• If it is not known to whom such money belongs, the account may be opened in the name of the person from whom the money is derived, as the estate from which the money has been received, or the estate from which the money is derived, as the case may be. Money in the Guardian’s Fund is invested with the Public Investment Commission and audited annually.
• A minor can claim the invested money, as well as the accrued interest on reaching the age of majority (on his/her eighteenth birthday, marriage or declaration of majority by the High Court). Money can be claimed by the beneficiary when entitled by way of an application on form J251, supported by a certified copy of the account holder’s identity document/passport/ marriage certificate/order of court and verification of fingerprints of applicant.
• In the case of untraced or undetermined beneficiaries, money can be claimed by the beneficiary when the account comes to his/her attention. The application must be made on form J251, supported by a certified copy of the account holder’s identity document/passport and verification of fingerprints of applicant. (The latter can be done at any Master’s Office as well as various Magistrate Courts)"

So as your mother died in 2001, it has not yet been 30 years, and you should still be able to claim your inheritance. If the house was sold, the money should have been deposited in the Guardian’s Fund for you as the minor heir.

Perhaps you should take any documents that you have about your mother, the property, her death, her ID, death certificate if you have it, as well as your own ID, to the Master’s Office nearest to where she lived in Cato Manor, and explain your situation. You need to find out if your mother’s death was reported, and if so, who was the person with the letter of authority charged with winding up the estate, and what you must do to claim the house, after this long period.

You should tell the Master that your cousin who had been living with your mother has changed his numbers and is no longer in contact with you, and you don’t know what has become of the house which he was looking after for you until you grew up. Has the house been sold? In whose name is the Title Deed? 

The nearest Master’s offices to Cato Manor would be in Cato Crest, in the eThekwini Magistraterial District. That would be the Durban Magistrate’s Court.

If you aren’t assisted by the Master in the Durban Court, this is the helpline of the Chief Master of the High Court:
Tel: 012 315 1207
E-mail: chiefmaster@justice.gov.za
You could also ask one of the following organisations for help:

Legal Aid (which is a means-tested organisation) for free legal advice and assistance:
Legal Aid Advice Line (Toll-free): 0800 110 110
Please-Call-Me number: 079 835 7179

The Black Sash, an organisation that gives free paralegal advice:
Email: help@blacksash.org.za 
Helpline: 072 663 3739 or 063 610 1865

Pro Bono, a legal organisation that will take a case on without charge, if they think it is in the public interest:
Email: info@probono.org.za
Johannesburg: 011 339 6080
Cape Town: 087 806 6070/1/2

Women’s Legal Centre Trust:
info@wlce.co.za
 

Wishing you the best,
Athalie