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Human Settlements

CONTACTS
New Housing and Informal Housing: 044 802 2003
Physical address New Housing: Sanlam Building, St John Street
Director and Administration: 044 801 9474

Click for FLISP Brochure.
Click for Policies related to Human Settlements.
Click for Forms related to Human Settlements.
Click for Guidelines for Human Settlements (Love your Home Pre and Post Ownership)

NEW HOUSING
The George Municipality acts as implementation agent of new housing projects for the Western Cape Department of Human Settlements.

Waiting List
To apply for housing in the George Municipal area, persons must register on the Western Cape Housing Database by visiting the Section: New Housing and complete a Waiting list form.  Registration on the Housing Demand Database can also be done via the Western Cape Government App (All supporting documents must be attached before the application can be approved).

Once the form is filled in (either at the office or on the app), the application is processed. The database gives the applicant a unique reference number, which remains the same until he or she receives a housing opportunity. The applicant receives a card showing the unique reference number as proof that the application has been uploaded to the database.

Any written documentation of an applicant, such as copies of identity documents, birth certificates and changes of information is scanned and stored under the applicant’s identity number on an electronic database so that it is easily obtainable.

Persons that are already on the housing list must remember that they must update their contact details at the New Housing office every time it changes.  All updates must be done in the office.

If you applied for housing in conjunction with another person, the name of that person will also be indicated. If you are no longer with the person with whom you initially applied, you must visit the New Housing offices to correct such information.

Enquiries: New Housing 044 802-2019/2022 –Yvonne Mnapu:  ymnapu@george.gov.za/ Charne Flores: ckflores@george.gov.za

Qualifying criteria for a RDP subsidy
According to the National Housing Criteria you may qualify for  a housing opportunity if you are:

  • A South African citizen
  • Over 21 and mentally competent to sign a contract
  • Married or living with a partner, single and have dependents, a single military veteran or aged without dependents (young people over 18 can apply if single and without independents with presumption that situation will change over the years and can be updated accordingly)
  • Earn less than R3500 per month per household
  • A first-time government subsidy recipient
  • A first-time home owner
  • Must be registered on the Housing Demand Database for 3 years or longer

Documentation required to apply:

  • Salary advice of the earning adults in the household OR
  • Affidavit confirming that you are unemployed
  • Identity documents of adults in the household
  • Marriage certificate if applicable
  • Divorce order and proof of custody of children if applicable
  • Birth certificates of children if applicable
  • Death certificate of husband or wife if applicable

HOUSING SUBSIDY PROGRAMMES

FINANCE-LINKED INDIVIDUAL SUBSIDY (FLISP)
FLISP is a government subsidy for first time homebuyers .

FLISP assists qualifying beneficiaries and first-time home buyers to obtain finance to:

  • Acquire ownership of an existing residential property, or
  • Obtain a vacant serviced residential stand that is linked to a plot-and-plan contract with home builders registered with the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC), or
  • Build a new house on a serviced residential stand that is already owned by the beneficiary with the assistance of a home builder registered with the National Home Builders Registration Council (NHBRC).The FLISP subsidy depends on where your income falls within that bracket.  The lower your income, the higher your subsidy, with the highest possible subsidy being R130  505 and the lowest being R30 001.

The FLISP subsidy can be used for the following:

  • Can be used as a deposit when purchasing a property
  • Can be used as a payment for transfer and bond registration
  • Can be used to reduce your loan amount thereby reducing the monthly instalments.

The qualifying criteria for a FLISP subsidy are the following:

  • Earn between R3 501 and R22 000 per month, collectively.
  • Be a South African citizen with a valid Identity Document, or a permanent resident with a permanent residence permit.
  • Not have qualified for a government housing subsidy before.
  • Not have owned a fixed residential property before.
  • Be competent to contract – over 18 years old and legally married or legally divorced and of sound mind.
  • Be married or cohabiting.
  • Be single with financial dependents.

Previously it was a requirement that you have to apply for a home loan which must be approve before you could apply for FLISP. This is no longer a requirement, and the following sources of finance can also be utilised to apply:

  • Approved home loan
  • The beneficiary’s pension/provident fund loan
  • A co-operative or community-based savings scheme, i.e. stokvel
  • The Government Employees Housing Scheme
  • Any other Employer-Assisted Housing Scheme
  • An unsecured loan
  • An Instalment Sale Agreement or Rent to own Agreement

The window period for applications has been reduced from 2 years to 6 months on bonded applications from 1/04/2022.
Enquiries: Zinobia Spies 044 802 2003: zdspies@george.gov.za

INFORMAL HOUSING
The Informal Housing division assists with basic water and sanitation emergencies for registered indigent households in informal settlements. Report such emergencies on 80 2-2003 or after hours on 044 801 6300.-

EMERGENCY HOUSING
The George Municipality assists with the replacement of informal structures for vulnerable people living in dire circumstances or informal structures that were destroyed during disaster such as fire or flood.

The Department Human Settlements deals with each case on merit, based on a strict set of requirements including that there be proof that the cause of the fire was not arson or negligence, that the burnt-down or damaged structure was neither for sleeping only nor illegally occupying land. Due to budgetary constraints priority is given to families with children, the elderly and the disabled.

Persons who lost their informal house in a disaster and who qualify for assistance, must apply in person at the George Municipality Existing Housing Department offices behind the municipality main building.

Qualification criteria for assistance with an emergency structure
Who will be assisted

  1. Person who are evicted and the Court has ordered the municipality to provide accommodation.
  2. Households affected by fire and inclement weather rendering their structures unsafe and uninhabitable.
  3. Persons residing in formal houses which have been destroyed by fire where the house has been declared structurally unsafe by the Building Control Department.

Who will not qualify

  1. Persons residing on private property;
  2. Single persons under the age of 60 with no dependants ;
  3. Additions to existing formal houses;
  4. Households that have been assisted previously; and
  5. Persons who have illegally invaded land.

Affected applicants must submit the following documents Documents that have been tampered with (like additional names added to the fire report) will not be accepted and assistance not given.

Documentation required

For Court-ordered evictions the following information is required:

  • Certified copies of the ID documents of the adult members of the household
  • birth certificates of minor children
  • A copy of any marriage certificate;
  • A copy of current pay slips; and
  • The Order of Court which instructs the Municipality to provide temporary accommodation.

For fire incidents, the following documents must be submitted before an emergency structure can be approved:

  • Fire Incident Report from the Fire Department;
  • SAPD report of findings at the scene where fire occurred; and
  • Ccertified copies of the ID documents of the adult members of the household;
  • copies of birth certificates of minor children
  • A copy of any marriage certificate;
  • A copy of current pay slips;

Persons for which structures were approved, are usually assisted within a few days or weeks depending on the capacity of the working team, whether there are sufficient materials and how many other people are being assisted on disasters that happened before theirs.

A qualifying person/household will either receive a 4mx5m corrugated sheet structure or a partially damaged structure will be fixed. The Human Settlements Department has a team of handymen that build or fix the damaged structures.

 

PLASTIC SHEETS (GUNPLAS) IN BAD WEATHER
‘Gunplas’ (plastic sheeting) is provided only during inclement weather when the municipality has plastic sheeting available.

Due to funding constraints, preference is given to the elderly and disabled persons residing in informal settlements (excluding persons who illegally invaded municipal land) who are living in informal housing where roofs are dilapidated. Thereafter, if more plastic is available, applicants may be assisted following an investigation into the circumstances of applicants and the condition of the structure. Backyarders residing on private property are not assisted as per the approved emergency housing policy.

The municipality emphasises that the provision of ‘Gunplas’ is a temporary relief measure during bad weather and it remains the responsibility of the applicant to seek means to repair the roof and/or structure. ‘Gunplas’ delivered in the most deserving cases. Only one piece of ‘Gunplas’ (6m x 7.5m) per applicant will be issued every 6 months.

Qualification criteria for assistance with Gunplas (Micron Plastic) or any similar suitable material

Who will be assisted

  • Persons residing in informal settlements in structures which, during an assessment, has been found to have serious leakages, and who are unable to assist themselves.

Who will not be assisted

  • Single persons under the age of 60 with no dependants ;
  • Persons residing on private property;
  • Persons residing in formal houses;
  • Households who have received assistance within past six months unless an assessment deems it necessary; and
  • Persons who have illegally invaded land.

Requests for ‘Gunplas’ can be made in one of the following ways:

  • During inclement weather over weekends, requests can be directed to the Ward Councillor who will in turn submit the requests to the official on standby.
  • There is an official ‘Gunplas’ application form, copies of which are issued to the Ward Councillor. The applicant must fill in the form and return it to the George Municipality New Housing section, c/o St John and Varing Streets for processing.
  • The applicant can go to the New Housing section and complete a form there.
  • A ‘Gunplas’ application MUST include the applicant’s name, surname, identity number and the address (name of the informal settlement and structure number) where the ‘Gunplas’ is required.
  • When a request is received, an investigation is made at the address provided and ‘Gunplas’ delivered in the most deserving cases. Only one piece of ‘Gunplas’ (6m x 5m) per applicant will be issued.

Required documentation is required when applying for “gunplas”:

  • ID Copies of applicants,
  • Copies of minor children(s) birth certificate(s)

Enquiries:
Emergency Housing (Temporary Structures) & assistance with gunplast (micro plastic)
Harriet Meyer 044-802 2026 hemeyer@george.gov.za