There has been a 38% year-on-year (y/y) decrease in the amount of national property sales transactions (across all property price brackets) completed between January and July 2008, compared to the same period 2007, statistics by RE/MAX of Southern Africa revealed.
Properties valued under R499k sold this year are 36% less than in 2007.
The newly developed FNB House Price Index recorded 2,3% year-on-year (y/y) price inflation in August, compared with 3,5% in July, thereby continuing its declining inflation trend, FNB said on Thursday.
However, on a month-on-month basis, price deflation has already been in progress for six consecutive months since March of this year, recording -0,3% in August.
Due to inflation and the high costs of property an increasing number of buyers are pooling resources with friends, family or likeminded investors in order get a foothold in the market.
ERA Cape Town estate agent Gavin Zinn said there had been and “enormous” increase in the number of people buying houses as a joint venture over the last two years.
Zinn said it was a “survival mechanism” to beat high living costs, and due to the fact that property costs had “gone through the roof” in recent years, people in the middle income market could no longer afford to buy property on an individual basis.
Up to 50% of buyers are now paying cash when purchasing properties in Cape Town’s northern suburbs.
Mariana Vercueil of the local RealNet office reports that the property market in the area is livelier than in months. “But the most surprising element is that we are seeing droves of cash buyers.”
The appearance of damp is dreaded by every homeowner. Not only because of the underlying problem but also the effort involved in getting rid of it. However, with the technology of today, an increasing range of highly effective products are being developed to deal with these sorts of problems.
Stop eating out, slash new clothes spending, reduce the work time of domestic staff, forget holidays and husbands, roll up your sleeves and get stuck into helping with domestic duties.
These are some of the tips that Nic van den Berg, owner broker of RE/MAX Jowic in Centurion, suggests as key measures to prevent families being forced into selling their home or allowing their repossession by the banks.
The sale of property on instalment - or by terms deed of sale - is making a comeback as buyers experience increasing difficulty in qualifying for home loans, according to RealNet property group chief executive Tjaart van der Walt.
He says this method of purchase, widely used in the 1970s, does offer solutions in tough times, particularly for first-time homebuyers.
Buying a property as an individual is the simplest and cheapest method but a growing number are opting to purchase a property in other legal entities due to the greater protection offered.
But tread carefully, advises Heather Briggs of Shepstone & Wylie Attorneys, and consider the pros and cons, particularly involving tax, of each entity before deciding which best suits your needs.
There are hopes that South Africa’s depressed residential market is turning - and one of the signs is an increase in the number of visitors to showhouses.
Shaun Harris
Durban - Financial crises, as we’re seeing in many equity markets and particularly in residential property, often offers the potential to make money.
Three South African-born brothers are taking a view through the property gloom and intend setting up a “vulture fund” for local investors to take advantage of the international property meltdown.
