Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa Real Estate Investor Magazine - May 2017 | Page 17

C apetonians would have noticed an increase of non-CA number plates on the roads of late. Each new year in Cape Town brings with it a fresh influx of students pursuing further education at one of the Western Cape’s (WC’s) acclaimed tertiary institutions, as well as movement into the region of families from other provinces looking to pursue the unique lifestyle opportunities the WC offers. These are South Africans who are not necessarily willing to leave their country of birth but are attracted to the WC because of its promise of an improved quality of life. A 2015 MoneyWeb article refers to the increasing trend of Gauteng and KZN residents, moving to Cape Town and its surrounds as ‘semi-gration’. According to 2016 State of Cities Report (SoCR), these semigration patterns have not been limited to middle or high income families. SoCR cites a substantial growth in Cape Town’s population between 2001 and 2011, with it being the only city in which the proportion of people living in informal areas also increased over this time. This despite a significant growth in the cost of living reported for Cape Town, Tshwane and Johannesburg alike. According to John Loos, household and property sector strategist at FNB, “studying migration patterns between regions in South Africa can provide a good indication of household perceptions towards regions, perceptions of economic opportunity, lifestyle or how well a region is run”. Loos believes that people “vote with their feet”. As such, a key driver behind semigration patterns in the country would appear to be an increased confidence in the economic opportunities and political management of the WC when compared to other regions. Semigration’s impact on the Western Cape property market What semigration has meant for the housing market in the WC is that property prices have been on a steady rise, with a year-on-year increase of 13.7% over five years being reported for suburbs like Vredehoek in the City Bowl and an average selling price spike of 14.9% year-on-year for Stellenbosch estates like Welgevonden. www.reimag.co.za MAY 2017 SA Real Estate Investor 13