Court orders sale of contractor's R1.68m home after failing to repay R165,000 for botched project

A Paarl couple that owns a R1.68 million home in Klein Parys, Paarl, might have to sell their family residence to satisfy a debt of around R165,000 resulting from a poorly executed construction project. The Western Cape High Court in Cape Town recently sanctioned the sale, pending an execution date of March 2027, to give the family time to arrange alternative housing for their two children aged nine and 11.

The debt surfaced from work carried out by Marius Alexander Joostenberg at the home, which remained unfinished and involved inferior materials and shoddy craftsmanship. Joostenberg failed to meet a repayment deadline of August 15, 2024, and the couple obtained a default judgment in December 2024. The magistrate's court had previously blocked the sale, stating Joostenberg's repayment plan might be feasible and proposing a financial inquiry.

However, the High Court determined that Joostenberg's current unemployment and the affordability of the proposed monthly payments over nine years made the arrangement unsustainable. The court also noted that the sheriff had been unable to locate any other assets to satisfy the judgment. Despite the property's value of R1.68 million and a bond of R236,614.89, the court found that selling it at the reserve price of R1 million would leave a significant amount after settling the bond and judgment debt, before covering execution costs.

The High Court's decision acknowledged the family's disruption and the need to relocate but did not conclude that the sale would necessarily result in homelessness.