Real Estate Investor February 2021 February 2021 #131 | Page 19

You can invest in the Crossways Farm Village lifestyle from as little as R275 000 . Click here to find out more .
Living in Zoom Towns According to the latest FNB Estate Agent Survey ( Q4,20 ), 11 % of all sales in the final quarter of 2020 were due to the relocation of the homeowner to another part of SA . The percentage was also 11 % in Q2 and is the highest percentage since Q1 2008 , when 13 % of all sales were due to relocation within SA . So , while relocation fell in popularity during 2018 and 2019 , the impact of the pandemic and associated lockdown is clearly evident in 2020 .
Western Cape , but also from Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal .
“ Many of our buyers have always wanted to live here , but were only able to consider it as a retirement dream - so they made do with weekends and holidays . Now , however , they see these towns as permanent residential locations as they are able to work remotely , with Cape Town International between 75km and 90km via the spectacularly-scenic , world-renowned , R44 Whale Coast route - Clarence Drive ,” says Nicola Lloyd , Pam Golding area manager for Rooi Els , Pringle Bay , Bettys Bay and Kleinmond .
According to Lloyd , there are now more younger buyers and families that are starting to flock these towns . She further says that the major demand is for homes priced between R2 million and R3 million .
Relocating to these zoom towns is more about the needs of the buyers and not necessarily dependant on what sellers offer . If you are eager to move out of the bustling and overpriced metropoles to smaller , more secure communities you might want to consider these areas popular with fellow semigrants .
In the Western Cape various villages such as Rooi Els , Pringle Bay , Bettys Bay , Kleinmond , Malmesbury , Hermanus , Onrus and Gansbaai , which offer easy access to Cape Town , are attracting home buyers not only from the Mother City and
In almost every aspect of life , the early bird catches the first worm . And in property , the early adopter enjoys the returns longer than the late one . Right now , people are moving to more relaxed and scenic areas , to put their minds and finances at ease . This , to a point where some zoom towns will inevitably feel the strain of their increased populations and may soon become just as overburdened and unaffordable as the cities the semigrants originally flocked . If you want to live or invest in a zoom town , there ' s no better time than now .
SOURCES Pam Golding , Seeff Properties , Crossways Farm Village , FNB , Lightstone , Slangit
SA Real Estate Investor Magazine FEBRUARY 2021 15