Partners: The Tenure Support Centre, 71point4 and the Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa (CAHF)
Capabilities: Action research, stakeholder engagement and policy analysis
Overview
The Tenure Support Centre (TSC) supports formal tenure and property rights for low-income urban households in South Africa. Its work connects practical assistance to households with research into the administrative and policy barriers that prevent property markets from working effectively.
71point4 and CAHF jointly lead the research and stakeholder engagement that draws on the TSC’s day-to-day work. The aim is to turn the problems households encounter into evidence that can support better processes, services and policy.
Practical support
The TSC helps households navigate title deed problems, formalise past informal transactions, transfer properties out of deceased estates and pursue primary transfer where a subsidised property has not yet been registered in the beneficiary’s name.
This work requires engagement with conveyancers, public officials and other service providers. The obstacles encountered reveal how costs, delays and gaps in administration affect households’ ability to secure and use their property rights.
From household experience to system change
The TSC works across three levels: clients, service providers and policymakers. Documenting the experience of resolving tenure problems helps identify opportunities for more accessible servicing models and more effective public administration.
The November 2024 presentation explains this approach, the scale of the tenure challenge and the opportunities for improving the functioning of the affordable property market.
Presentation
Download the TSC presentation (November 2024, PDF)
For more information, contact Illana Melzer.