Two regulators affect everyone who lives in or owns property in a complex or estate: the Community Schemes Ombud Service (CSOS), which oversees schemes, and the Property Practitioners Regulatory Authority (PPRA), which oversees agents and managing agents. Both have been busy in 2026.
CSOS: registration, CSOS Connect and disputes
Unregistered schemes are being chased. In a notice dated 19 March 2026, CSOS launched a campaign to enforce the CSOS Act's registration rules, which require a scheme to register within 30 days of incorporation. CSOS has about 38,000 schemes on its database and is running a project to find the rest, while government reviews the law to give CSOS stronger enforcement powers.
Compliance has moved online. Registration, queries, payments and dispute applications now run through the CSOS Connect platform.
Disputes can fail before they start. In August 2026, two financial disputes were dismissed without being heard, because the applicants did not fall within the CSOS Act's definitions. Check that you have legal standing and good evidence before you file. CSOS's consolidated Practice Directive, issued in July 2025, sets out the process.
PPRA: what changed for agents and managing agents
Every estate agent and managing agent must hold a valid Fidelity Fund Certificate (FFC); without one they may not legally trade or earn commission.
- BEE certificates are no longer needed for an FFC after a High Court ruling, but a valid FFC is still compulsory.
- Audit-report blocks can be lifted if practitioners regularise their compliance and apply to the PPRA.
- Trust account exemptions need PPRA approval; they are not automatic.
- Valuations must be honest. Agents may not inflate a value to win a mandate, and only registered valuers may call themselves valuation experts.
Do this now
- Confirm your scheme is registered with CSOS and that annual returns and quarterly CSOS levies are paid.
- Make sure CSOS Connect access sits with current trustees or your managing agent.
- Ask your managing agent or estate agent for their current FFC and their firm's FFC.
- Pay deposits and trust money only into the firm's trust account at a registered South African bank.
- If in doubt, call the PPRA on 087 285 3222 to confirm registration.
Free: scheme compliance check
Not sure where your scheme stands? Hewett Legacy Estates will check your CSOS registration, levy payments and governance documents at no cost. Every query has an owner, every deadline is tracked, and we guarantee a response within 18 hours. Request your free compliance check
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All posts are general information, not legal or financial advice.
