Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa Dec/Jan 2016/17 | Page 19

RESIDENTIAL
MARKETS
The property world was put in shock earlier this year when a Supreme Court judgement resulted that new property owners can be
held liable for the historic debt of previous owners as the debt “remained” with the property, notwithstanding the transfer of the
property from the previous owner and the issue of a “rates” clearance by the local Municipality.
In a ground breaking judgement delivered on 7 November the High Court in Gauteng Division [Pretoria] addressed the
constitutional issues regarding sections 118(1) and 118 (3) of the Local Government: Municipal Systems Act 32 of 2000 and ruled
that new property owners cannot be held liable for historic debt.

COMPANIES
FUTUREGROWTH

More than 20 000 Gauteng families are set to become first-time homeowners and secure a firm foothold in the residential property
market. This follows an investment by Futuregrowth Asset Management of R625 million in major housing projects being developed
by the Cosmopolitan Group. The investment is primarily being used to fund regulatory approvals and to install bulk services for
integrated housing developments that have been designed to include amenities ranging from schools to shopping centres in areas
close to major CBDs in Gauteng. Cosmopolitan are lower-to-middle-income housing specialists and have more than 20 years of
experience. Their houses are priced from R400 000, with packages tailored for families earning between R10 500 to around
R30 000 a month.

PEOPLE

SHAUN RADEMEYER

CEO BETTER LIFE HOME LOANS
“If you’ve decided to become a homeowner,
the first thing you need to do is find out
whether you have a good chance of being
approved for a home loan – or whether
lenders will consider you too “high-risk”.

www.reimag.co.za

DR ANDREW GOLDING

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OF PAM
GOLDING
“To say that it’s been a tumultuous year for
the planet is definitely an understatement,
and yet in the face of a sluggish and uncertain
domestic and global growth environment
and ongoing socio-political challenges, the
residential property market in South Africa
continues to exhibit extraordinary resilience
and remains one of the few bright spots in an
otherwise relatively lacklustre economy.”

BEN SHAW

CEO AND SERIAL ENTREPRENEUR
OF HOUSEME
“HouseME is a revolutionary new online
platform solution linking prospective tenants
to residential landlords. HouseME facilitates
rental auctions for verified properties
accessible only to screened, credit-worthy
tenants and backs this process with a free
rental guarantee and core management
services. “

DEC/JAN 2016 SA Real Estate Investor

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