A land title is a legal document which proves ownership or possession of a property, whether it is land or buildings developed on the land. Generally, all land title records are kept at the Land Office, or Registry. Land titles are used to simplify the process of transferring ownership, but can also play a part in fraudulent land transactions.
Without a title
Properties with only individual titles (not logged in the Registry) can be transferred with the use of a DOA (“Deed of Assignment”) document. This DOA assigns the sellers title and rights to the buyer, and once the DOA is officially stamped the buyer has legal rights to the title and property. This title will not be a part of the Land Office/Registry until it is officially registered.
Registering Property
Documents needed to register your property with the Land Office/Registry include: the original Issue Document of Title, certified NRIC or passport of both the buyer and seller OR “Company Memorandum and Articles of Association, Companies Commission of Malaysia (CCM) Company Search, Company Resolution, Return of Allotment of Shares – Form 24, List of Register of Directors, Managers and Secretaries – Form 49”, Land Office/Registry fees, and Quit Rent and Assessment receipt.
Facilitating Title Transactions
In Malaysian Land Law, the rightful owner of piece/pieces of property must possess a land title with his or her correct information reported. In order to sell the property, a land title must be present and several other steps must be taken on both the seller and the buyer’s part.
Documents necessary to transfer property include:
To transfer property to one (buyer), the aforementioned necessary documents must be presented to the Land Administrator to enter the buyer’s name into the Register Document of Title which will be held in the strong room at the Registry. The buyer will be sent a new Issue Document of Title usually one to two days from the date the documents were submitted.
Without going through all of these procedures, you put yourself at risk for buying fraudulent land. Unethical personnel can forge a title and sell you land that does not belong to them at all, therefore it is necessary to follow all proper steps when it comes to acquiring land and the utilization of land titles.
