“ SEMIGRANTS ARE UNLIKELY TO EXCHANGE COASTAL CONGESTION FOR SERVICE INSTABILITY.”
INTERNAL MIGRATION
THE NEW SEMIGRATION MAP
BY TARRYN-LEIGH SOLOMONS
COASTAL HOTSPOTS CONTINUE TO ATTRACT, BUT INLAND TOWNS AND EMERGING SECONDARY CITIES ARE GAINING GROUND AS AFFORDABILITY AND INFRASTRUCTURE TAKE PRIORITY.
While coastal lifestyle destinations have long captured attention, South Africa’ s semigration story – internal migration driven by lifestyle, housing affordability, or employment considerations – is far more complex. Gauteng continues to attract the largest share of internal migrants, even as rising property prices and infrastructure pressures redirect some demand to regional hubs and inland towns, says Renier Kriek, attorney, Chartered Banking Professional( SA), and MD of Sentinel Homes.
Affordability remains a key driver. As coastal property prices rise faster than incomes, inland towns and secondary coastal areas are becoming more attractive to households seeking larger properties and better value. The Eastern Cape is also emerging as a hotspot, with cities like Gqeberha drawing interest due to infrastructure investment and comparatively lower property prices, according to the Absa Homeowner Sentiment Index( HIS) for Q1 2025.
“ SEMIGRANTS ARE UNLIKELY TO EXCHANGE COASTAL CONGESTION FOR SERVICE INSTABILITY.”
KEY FACTORS INFLUENCING MIGRATION
“ Because coastal property prices rise faster than incomes, inland locations that offer materially better value – particularly for family housing – become more attractive,” Kriek tells InBound SA.“ St Helena Bay and Langebaan, in particular, have benefited from affordability-driven semigration.
“ However,” he says,“ affordability on its own is not enough. Infrastructure reliability has become a baseline requirement, including telephone and internet access, electricity, water, healthcare, and schooling. Semigrants are unlikely to exchange coastal congestion for service instability.”
Remote and hybrid work, Kriek adds, remain important enablers, particularly for skilled professionals, but they do not remove the need for access to employment centres.“ From anecdotal evidence, the trend also appears to be slowing as more employers insist on a return to the office.” Energy resilience and digital connectivity are increasingly influential, he says.“ This helps explain why economic hubs such as Gauteng continue to attract people despite the rise of remote work. And why inland towns with strong fibre networks and reliable private or municipal energy solutions are better positioned to attract mobile households.”
YOUNGER AND MIDDLE-AGED BUYERS ARE ON THE MOVE
Chante Williams and Ofentse Jumbella, lecturers in the Events, Tourism, and Hospitality Faculty at Boston City Campus, note that both younger households( 18 – 35) and middle-aged buyers( 36 – 49) are actively relocating.
22 INBOUND SA / MARCH 2026