Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa February/ March 2020 | Page 16

COVER STORY
title homes, although this is also a result of the shortage and
cost of land and mixed-use developments offering a live, work,
play lifestyle close to places of work,” Dr Golding said.
“The recent introduction of micro-units in Cape Town CBD and
surrounds is also a response to strong demand from first-time
buyers who want a ‘lock-up-and-go’ lifestyle and to enjoy downtown
living. This has been a key driver behind the shift in housing in South
Africa from freehold suburban homes to mixed-use precincts and
developments, and the rise of shared, third spaces,” he adds.
Affordable accommodation
The need for affordable student accommodation at this time of
the year is common in almost every city where there are tertiary
institutions. The previous year has seen the gathering of big
players in the property sector to strategise on how to tackle this
challenge. Not having accommodation not only inconveniences
students but poses a threat of academic underperformance.
“The shortage of accommodation for students near universities
and colleges continues unabated – a trend we believe will
continue and strengthen in 2020.” it is for this reason that
developers, property buyers and real estate investors should
take advantage of this highly unsaturated market.
Following in-depth discussions at the affordable student
housing summit in 2019, further talks regarding the need
for generic accommodation for everyone ensued. “There is a
growing number of young people looking for accommodation.
People of all ages and incomes are showing an increasing preference
for smaller, more conveniently located homes. With the existing
stock of homes predominantly freehold suburban houses, there
is plenty of reason for ongoing developments that will eventually
make up affordable accommodation,” said Andrew Golding.
Semigration
People seeking employment in this era are no longer limited to
one city. They are moving around the country (and the world)
to find success and wealth in different areas. Some people
are moving to either build a new life with different memories,
or start out as a young independent adult looking to build a
family. This emigration typically occurs in the same jurisdictions
and often referred to as semigration.
Dr Andrew Golding says, “this trend will continue. With areas
such as Cape Town’s Atlantic Seaboard and City Bowl set to
benefit most from Cape Town’s longstanding reputation as a
prime global city, while semigration to the Garden Route, KZN
and Boland in the Western Cape is ongoing. There are also signs
that semigrants who initially rented are beginning to purchase
homes. So, while the semigration trend may have slowed to
some extent, it is still having a positive impact on the property
market in areas where they have relocated. Congestion and the
deterioration in affordability appears to be the primary reason
that semigrants began looking beyond the Cape metro market
for homes along the Garden Route and KZN.”
Sustainable housing
Load-shedding is not a new occurance concerning South Africa.
It is an old phenomenon that has existed for approximately 12
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FEBRUARY/MARCH 2020 SA Real Estate Investor Magazine
years and is still ongoing. It is, however, gaining more traction now
than ever before. The real estate and property sector as well as the
entire nation feels the need to go off-grid and build homes with
self-sufficient energy and homes that will keep the lights on.
“Increasingly, people are looking to add energy and water
saving features to their homes to reduce monthly utilities costs
and enhance value, and climate change means that this will
become a growing imperative, where affordable,” Dr Golding said.
“This is likely to become a long-term trend which will gather
momentum in the years ahead and we anticipate this will also
become more widely adopted in lower-income housing as
there is a growing realisation that green homes can be more
cost-efficient to run. This is likely to occur in new developments
which include greater energy and water efficiency and
alternatives to municipal utilities,” He adds.
Women in property
Women today are by no means submitting to outdated societal
ideologies. Sitting back and watching their male counter parts
make money and maximise on wealth. In South Africa, the
work done by powerful women in business, at homes, in socio-
economic circumstances and in government is celebrated
country wide, because of the history of the country and its toll
on women.
“One of the most noteworthy acts that celebrates female
empowerment is that women can own assets” said Lightstone’s
Esteani Marx.
“People of all ages and
incomes are showing an
increasing preference for
smaller, more conveniently
located homes.”
Focusing specifically on the property sector and the overall
sales in this sector since 2014, statistics reveal that single
females dominated the property sales in both 2017 and 2018
compared to single men and even married couples. “The
average price they’re buying their homes for is just shy of
R800 000 – the highest that it’s ever been in the past 5 years,”
says Marx.
More positive findings from the data show the slight average
increase in properties owned by single females within the
R1,5 million-and-up price bracket – especially in a depressed
economic environment. There has also been encouraging
growth in single females buying property in the Eastern Cape.
“Overall, 2019 has proven to be a year of tepid economic
growth, another year in which government revenues have
disappointed – placing additional pressure on the country’s
financial situation and in turn, on consumers,” Dr Golding said.
The chief executive believes that the housing market will