Hopeful prospects for festive season coastal property sales

Monday, 21 December 2009
Hopeful prospects for festive season coastal property sales


The coastal property markets have been in the doldrums for some time, but interest is quickening again and the ERA property group’s coastal offices are expecting a “fair to good” sales period this holiday season.



“Coastal property demand is largely holiday home and retirement driven and is subject to cyclical trends that depend very much on economic conditions, but pent up demand may now be coming through,” says ERA South Africa CEO Gerhard Kotzé.



And a straw poll of ERA’s coastal offices lends support to this view. Starting at the sleepy harbour and diamond town of Port Nolloth, Marlize van Rooyen of ERA Carit says the festive season always brings fresh business.



“Buyers from upcountry areas as far afield as Pretoria, Thabazimbi and Kuruman traditionally visit our area at this time of the year and frequently this results in sales,” she says.



Sectional title homes are non-existent in the area, suggesting an opportunity for developers, she says, but there have been some significant new developments including the upmarket Kai Kai mixed use scheme which now has all its approvals and is selling well with land/property packages of about R5m and more. Affordable McDougal’s Bay, 4kms from Port Nolloth, is also in demand. Beautiful beaches and the peaceful ambience are the town’s big drawcards.



Then beyond the Cape peninsula at perennially popular Hermanus, a softer property market has seen serious sellers drop their prices by about 10 to 15%, says Beverley Newenham of ERA Carit Hermanus. The R1,2m to R1,3m segment is the most active right now and not surprisingly, seafront properties are in the greatest demand. Some new development is under way and there are rumours of a new retirement village project.



Further east, Sedgefield’s market is also looking up, says ERA National’s Henning Swanepoel. “The commissioning of a water desalination plant in the town is expected to have a positive impact on demand for local properties which have seen their values remaining pretty well static for some while now,” he says.



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At Jeffreys Bay, the market has picked up, bank lending has improved markedly and the R1,2m to R1,5m market is the most active, says Lindy Cooper of the local ERA office.



“We have a relaxed atmosphere and in every way we are a holiday and retirement town with a wide variety of property types and prices. The Christmas period prospects are good.”



In KZN, Carol Pienaar of ERA Unique Amanzimtoti says that although the petrol price, interest rates and the Credit Act have definitely slowed the market down, the “smart money” is looking for bargains right now and cash buyers have emerged.



Meanwhile on the KZN north coast, Mtunzini is being billed as the province’s best kept secret. Sales and values have held up well and the market is picking up, says Sonia Baumann of ERA Mtunzini. There is a surprisingly large number of expat buyers.



The River Estate, a controlled architectural development, is doing well, she says. New freehold, sectional title and retirement projects are under way and “we expect a favourable festive season,” she says.

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