Tax consultant Fanus Jonck has sent us useful information about buying property:

“As a tax consultant I am often asked ‘Is it worth dissolving a company (a property that is registered in a company) and buying the property in one’s own name?’

To enable one to answer this question one needs to take the following factors into account:

It is not advisable to do the transfer if the intention is to keep the property for less than 2 years. The cost of transfer outweighs the tax benefit of paying less capital gains tax and less accounting fees.

If a R700 000 property is transferred to an individual, the transfer fee is about R18 644. If the property is transferred into a trust or a company, the transfer fee will be about R64 664.

If you are paying R5 000 per year for financials and submitting of tax returns, then one should compare these costs to the transfer fees. If a property is kept for 10 years or longer in the entity’s name, you will pay a minimum R50 000 in accounting fees. You should compare this cost with the tax saving and the legal transfer fees! If the R700 000 property is in a Close Corporation (CC) or in a company and you intend to hold the property for more than 5 years, it is advisable to transfer to an individual. The transfer cost will be much less than the 5 years accounting fees. If you are thinking of transferring to a trust, then the intention to hold should be a bit longer. You should also check the beneficiaries’ individual tax rates before making this decision!

If you pay 40% on any additional income, you have to compare that with the Company’s tax rate of 28%. The only way to distribute it to the members is to declare a dividend, but this will trigger another tax called Secondary Taxation on Companies (STC) (which is currently in the process of being replaced by a dividend withholding tax), that is levied at 10% on any distributions made to members.

If you are, it is much easier to answer this question because the tax saving could be much more if the property is in your own name. Transfer is however still not advisable if you are going to sell after a short period of time because transfer costs have to be paid on the property that you are transferring into your private name. If you transfer from a company or CC into your private name, you have to pay transfer duty again.

In making the decision one also needs to take estate duty into account. Each person’s circumstances are different and that is why property investors should discuss their personal scenario with a tax consultant. You are welcome to contact Fanus Jonck (tax@jonck.net, or 0027-21-9134164) with your property tax queries.”

Hiermee ŉ lekker aanbod van die tydskrif Kakkerlak – ‘n Afrikaanse tydskrif oor letterkunde en veel meer. Al is julle ver, ken julle dalk iemand wat sal belangstel ... versprei gerus so wyd as moontlik. Kakkerlak is ook ŉ lekker geskenk.

Verkoop Kakkerlak en wen 2 nagte vir 6 mense op
die Fleur de Lys-landgoed!

Die vorige uitgawes van Kakkerlak (1 tot 8) is nog teen ’n spesiale prys van R160 per pakkie (posgeld uitgesluit – vir inligting kontak kakkerlak@mweb.co.za) beskikbaar. Maak asseblief van die ingeslote bestelvorm gebruik indien u belangstel om vriende en familie met hierdie waardevolle geskenk te verras. Help ons om op hierdie wyse Kakkerlak te bemark en sy verspreiding in u vriendekring en by u kerke en skole uit te brei. Die persoon wat teen die einde van Julie 2008 die meeste pakkies verkoop het, kan TWEE nagte vir SES persone wen op die pragtige Fleur de Lys-landgoed in die Hoedspruit-omgewing - webtuiste: www.fleurdelys.co.za. Daar is ook ’n geskenkpak van 3 bottels wyn elk te wen vir die twee naaswenners. Die wyn, afgerond met ŉ spesiale Kakkerlak-plakker, met die gesig van generaal De la Rey daarop, is afkomstig van die De Compagnie-wynplaas in Wellington, waarvan skrywer Riana Scheepers mede-eienaar is. Meer besonderhede en visuele materiaal sal binnekort op Kakkerlak se webwerf, www.kakkerlak.co.za, verskyn!

BESTELVORM
Ek, ___________________ (naam en van)
bestel graag ________________________(getal) Kakkerlak-pakkie(s) @ R160 per pakkie (posgeld uitgesluit – vir inligting kontak kakkerlak@mweb.co.za)

OF ________________ los uitgawe(s) van nr(s).______________ @ R20 per eksemplaar.
My telefoonnommer(s) is: ____________________

Bedrae sluit posgeld in.
Inbetalings: Kakkerlak uitgewers, ABSA, Horison-tak, takkode 630-841, tjekrekening: 406 592 9451.

Faks hierdie bestelvorm saam met u betaalbewys na 086 689 2054 of stuur dit per e-pos na kakkerlak@mweb.co.za of pos dit aan Kakkerlak-bestelling, Posbus 5033, Horison, 1730.

Pos dié pakkies asseblief na die volgende adres:
*_______________________________________________________________________
(naam en posadres van persoon aan wie dit gepos moet word)
________________________________________________________________________
* Indien hierdie bestelling NIE vir uself is nie, meld asseblief die naam van die persoon aan wie dit gepos moet word in die gegewe spasie by die *

If you are a Christian abroad, who is a member of a South African congregation or group, or are looking for such contact, please let us know. We would love to hear from you at alana@afriforum.co.za.

Rev. Oppies Opperman started working in Kabul, Afghanistan in June 2007. He holds services on Fridays and also sends out daily devotions by email to 117 people in Afghanistan, Nigeria, Italy, and elsewhere. His address is 32oppies@gmail.com.

Graham asks: “I am preparing for a four month visit to Cape Town and want to purchase medical insurance here which I will need to cover the possibility of medical emergencies such as cardiac failure whilst in South Africa. In order to purchase adequate cover could you please give me an estimate of what emergency medical services cost for, for example, cardiac related problems in a private hospital in the Cape? Your advice, as always, would be much appreciated.”

Ronell Kruger, portfolio manager of Solidarity Health Care replies: “Dear Graham, it is not possible to give you an exact estimate of what treatment will cost for cardiac failure, for example, the reason being that most private hospitals in South Africa, because they are private hospitals, have their own tariffs. Also, the treatment might differ with each patient which will also have an impact on the cost of such treatment. I would suggest for you to take out the best possible medical insurance available in order for you to have the assurance of the best treatment if something might be needed. Not all hospitals accept unknown or foreign medical schemes’ coverage, and you should arrange the above with your travel agent who, I am sure, will know what will be acceptable. Please accept my apologies for not being able to give you clear answers to this question.”

Contact the following agents for quotes to ship your goods back to South Africa:

Jannie du Toit sends the information below regarding a tour which he, Christa Steyn and three young South African musicians are planning to The Netherlands and Belgium. If no shows are scheduled in your vicinity yet, you can also contact Jannie and help him to organise one. There is still room for more shows on their programme. Jannie’s address is agterplaas@icon.co.za.

Dr. Attie Snyman is still busy with his research about emigration with a publication or documentary film in mind. If you are prepared to share your experiences with him, please contact him at assnyman@absamail.co.za or 0027-82-4509347.

This month Ronell Kruger shares her photo of a little purple Karoo home with us. Who said the Karoo is a colourless landscape!

Jaco and Amber on the Fish River Hiking Trail. They do missionary work in Zambia – contact us if you would like to get involved.

This month’s devotion comes from the web site www.egafrikaans.co.za. Visit it to read a daily message and to see all the other interesting information available there.

Read: 1 Peter 4:12-19 and 5:5-11: "But insofar as you are sharing Christ's sufferings, rejoice, so that when His glory is revealed, you may also rejoice with triumph."

When you look at the world around you, you will see many people who are suffering one way or another. Some suffer because they are ill. Others because they do not have food. Others because there is a war raging in their country. Others because they are unemployed. Others because they have accepted Jesus as God in their lives and are being persecuted as a result of this choice. There are so many ways in which people suffer. In this section from a letter of Peter to the persecuted faithful in the north of Asia Minor, Peter reminds them of the importance of being joyful in spite of one’s circumstances.

How can one be happy when your life is a mess and it seems as if nothing will ever get better again? You manage by not trusting in or building your happiness on what you own and on the circumstances in which you find yourself, but by finding your joy in Jesus. 1 Peter 1:8-9 says: “Without having seen Him, you love Him; though you do not even now see Him, you believe in Him and exult and thrill with inexpressible and glorious joy. At the same time you receive the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls." The joy which we as Christians need to have, therefore is joy resulting from our relationship with our Saviour, Jesus Christ.