August 19 2025 17:20
The Legacy by Africrest
Australia may have edged out the Springboks and Proteas this past weekend, but when it comes to developing much needed rental housing, South Africa takes the win.
According to property consultant Knight Frank’s recent Horizons report, Australia delivered 4,349 multi-family apartments last year. In the same period, Johannesburg-based Africrest Properties and Divercity Property Group developed more than 4,500 apartments for rental- outpacing the country.
Multifamily housing means that that the entire property is owned, rented and managed by a single landlord and the apartments are not sold. This asset class is well established in America and has been growing in the UK, Europe and Australia. The model is designed to offers tenants professional property management and consistent service. Institutional investors are increasingly becoming drawn to multifamily housing asset class due to its stable and predictable cash flow.
Africrest is one of the established multifamily asset landlords.
“Africrest’s aggressive development schedule is not just about quantity; it’s a strategic response to a critical market need. The company’s focus on developing much-needed middle-income housing for rental, specifically within major work nodes such as the Sandton and Bryanston CBDs, underscores a targeted approach to urban densification and addressing housing shortages,” said Greg Blend, director of Africrest.
Divercity, another large developer and landlord in the South African Multifamily sector says it plays a pivotal role in expanding the country’s rental housing landscape, with large-scale developments such as Barlow Park in Sandton that bring affordable, well-located apartments to previously underserved markets.
“We are in an exciting time in South Africa where multifamily is becoming established as an institutionally invested asset class, with growing investor interest and appetite,” said Carel Kleynhans, CEO of Divercity.
The momentum isn’t slowing. Divercity is growing its portfolio by more than 2000 units per year and recognises significant runway for growth and healthy competition ahead. Africrest plans to expand its portfolio to more than 10,000 apartments in the next 18 months.
247@propertyflash.co.za
