To own land a person must have reached the age of majority, twenty-one
A worked RES examination question on capacity to hold land, from our Paper 1 bank — with the rule it turns on, and why each of the four options is right or wrong.
The question
A young man of nineteen has been left a sum of money and wants to buy a small apartment in his own name to live in. His uncle tells him he is too young to hold the property himself and that something must be done to hold it for him until he is older.
Which statement is correct?
The answer, and why
Answer: B
The rule. To own land a person must have reached the age of majority, twenty-one. Below that age the property must be held for him on trust.
Why B is correct. At nineteen he is below the age of majority, so the apartment must be held on trust for him.
The other options.
- A treats eighteen as enough to own land, which is the leasing age, not the owning age.
- C and D try to cure the incapacity with a parent's consent or an adult co-owner, when the answer is a trust.
Exam note. Two ages run through this lesson: eighteen to lease, twenty-one to own. Nineteen is placed to catch the candidate who remembers only one of them.
Want a full paper instead of one question?
The free half-paper is 20 questions with a Section B case study, explained to this same depth. The paid sets are ten full 80-question papers across Paper 1 and Paper 2, every figure checked against the current IRAS, CEA, HDB, URA and SLA position.
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Independent study material. Not affiliated with or endorsed by the Council for Estate Agencies. No pass guarantee — for study use only.