Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa Real Estate Investor Magazine March 2018 | Page 10

Q&A Property Advice Q How likely is a rate cut in your opinion and how would this affect property prices? A PAUL STEVENS CEO of Just Property Given the change on the po- litical front, I do think that a large degree of confidence has been restored. While there are still many uncertainties, this sense of hope will slowly start to affect our economic situation. We have already seen the rand strengthen over the past weeks and at the time of writing it is currently trading at the lowest it’s been for a couple of years. With the stabilising and strengthening of the rand our rate of inflation should start to decline, and this in turn will hopefully lead Q A ANDREW RISSIK Managing Director of Forex and International Projects at Sable International ASK THE EXPERTS 8 to a rate cut. The next Monetary Policy Committee meeting is late in March but I would think that any cuts are only likely from the middle of the year. If they come, the cuts will probably be conserva- tive – around 25 basis points and I do not anticipate much more than 50 basis points during the course of the year. Rate cuts take time to filter through to the housing mar- ket but if they’re linked with more political stability and lower infla- tion, there is no doubt of a positive effect on the property market. How does the Golden Residence Permit Pro- gramme in Portugal work? Through the purchase of a property in Portugal with a minimum value of €500,000, South African investors will be given access to the Portuguese government’s Golden Residence Permit Programme (GRPP). The GRPP allows you to continue living in South Africa while hold- ing your Golden Visa. This means you and your family can continue living in South Africa while still holding EU residency rights. A Golden Visa holder needs to spend seven days on year one in Portugal, 14 days in the next two years and 14 days the following two years to remain a Portuguese resident. Af- ter six years of consecutive residen- cy, you are then eligible to apply to become a Portuguese citizen - when you get to this point you will have to satisfy a few other criteria, after which you will have an EU passport. Potentially leaving South Africa for greener pastures is an emotive issue, but a programme like the GRPP at least allows you to keep your emigration options open, while investing in a solid, yield-generating asset. Do you have a property question you would like answered by our experts? If so, post it on ASK THE EXPERTS on www.reimag.co.za or email [email protected] MARCH 2018 SA Real Estate Investor Magazine