Registrar-Generals-Department-Annual-report-1971-1972 — Page 33

Apportionment of Crown Rent and Premium

67. Subject to any directions given by the Governor, the Land Officer has power under the Crown Rent and Premium (Apportion- ment) Ordinance to apportion, between the owners of the sections (or other divisions) into which a lot has been divided or between the owners of flats or other units in a building, the Crown rent and premium payable in respect of the lot. One of the effects of an appor- tionment of Crown rent and premium on a section is that the section is then deemed to be held under a separate Crown lease containing the same terms and conditions as the Crown lease of the whole lot, subject to a covenant to pay the determined Crown rent and the determined annual instalment of premium instead of the Crown rent and premium payable under the Crown lease of the whole lot. An apportionment of Crown rent and premium on a relevant interest (i.e. an undivided share in the land on which a building stands and the premises, usually a flat or shop, in that building to which it relates) replaces the collective liability of all the owners for payment of the whole Crown rent and premium payable in respect of the land with a liability on the individual owner of the relevant interest to pay direct to the Crown the determined Crown rent and the deter- mined annual instalment of premium in respect of his relevant interest only.

68. On 22nd June 1970 the Governor issued a direction to the Land Officer in respect of buildings, whether completed or not, where an assignment or an agreement for sale and purchase of a unit therein has been registered in the Land Office prior to 1st August 1970 but no instrument has been registered in the Land Office that contains a basis of apportionment acceptable to the Land Officer. The Gover- nor's direction was that the Land Officer should not exercise his powers of apportionment in respect of relevant interests in these cases until either the owners have agreed amongst themselves upon a basis of apportionment acceptable to the Land Officer or some other method of dealing with such cases has been devised.

69. During the year the Crown rents of 626 sections of lots and 4,466 relevant interests, and the annual instalments of premium of six sections of lots and 1,521 relevant interests were determined.

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