June 22 2023
This is a guest article by Seeff Property Group
The demand from semigration buyers for property across the Cape continues at pace and it is unlikely that semigration to the Cape will lose steam, Samuel Seeff, chairman of the Seeff Property Group said on Thursday.
It may slow down, but only due to buyers being hamstrung by an inability to sell their houses elsewhere in the country, he said.
The Cape metro is increasingly being seen as a new hub for head offices, and services including technology, with Amazon, Takealot and others wanting to operate there.
Semigration could pick up further because of the deterioration of service delivery in municipalities. The desire to move to the Cape is also driven by a search for a better quality of life, according to Seeff.
Ross Levin, licensee for Seeff Atlantic Seaboard and City Bowl said that there is a strong influx of semigration buyers to the coastal suburbs.
While these buyers were traditionally from the Gauteng and inland areas, they are now also coming from the KZN region. High-end buyers see the Cape as a rising hub, and they are investing.
“We are also seeing a stream of businesses moving to the city. A recent FNB report also reported that the commercial property sector in the city is doing better compared to most other areas with semigration being a boost for property development,” said Levin.
There is no decline in prices here and Seeff’s agents are seeing a shortage of stock in many price bands, especially in the R3m to R18m range. The Cape has seen a massive bounce back in tourism and with that a welcome return in international buyers.
Looking at the sales statistics in Cape Town for this year, there have already been 51 sales above R20m with a combined value of R1.767bn. International buyers have also invested heavily in property during the first few months of this year.
This includes Russian and European buyers, especially from Germany, the UK and the Netherlands, who are looking for alternative markets to invest in while the Russia-Ukraine War continues.
Nadine Jocum, an agent with the Seeff Camps Bay team said that there has been an increase in demand for property in Camps Bay, priced especially above R5m, but also in the luxury bands for houses and apartments priced up to R11m and over R20m.
Adrian Mauerberger and Bryan Ginsburg, luxury sectional title agents with Seeff Atlantic Seaboard said that luxury apartments were in high demand, especially in the R4.5m to R8m price bands, but buyers had paid up to R72m for a super luxury beach apartment over the past year.
It is also not just sales, but the rentals market is also strong in Cape Town, boosted by inward demand. Aside from the Atlantic Seaboard, the Blouberg, False Bay and Southern Suburbs are popular along with the Northern Suburbs and further out to the Winelands towns of Paarl, Stellenbosch and Somerset West, according to Samuel Seeff.
“While many areas in Cape Town are pricey, there are many areas which are still affordable and offer housing below R1.8m. These areas such as the greater Milnerton and Blouberg area for example have seen significant semigration related sales and rentals,” he said.
Property values in the Cape have grown significantly faster and at a higher rate compared with the rest of the country.
“People move to Cape Town not because of the cost of property, but specifically for access to better services, but also a change of lifestyle; these two factors seemingly going hand-in-hand for many buyers,” said Seeff.
alistair@propertyflash.co.za