Properties for Sale: 127,473
Properties to Rent: 9,765

Johannesburg — A Zimbabwean property valued at R2,5m in Cape Town was seized yesterday to cover the legal costs of obtaining an order against President Robert Mugabe for illegally confiscating property from 79 Zimbabwe farmers...

Decrease in interest rate good for real estate

Cape Town, 25 March 2010: While it is anticipated that interest rates will increase in early 2011, the fact that the Reserve Bank announced a 50 basis point cut in the interest rate from 10,5% to 10% bodes well for the future of the real estate market...

Owen Dormehl, CEO of Dormehl Property Group says “Fantastic news, the age of miracles is not yet over! The Reserves Bank's decision to reduce the rate by 50 basis points is a very welcome unexpected gift and it will definitely provide a positive stimulus to assist the real estate market's delicate recovery which appears to be taking place”.

You can thank Absa, FNB, Nedbank and Standard Bank – SA’s ‘big four’ banks – for the the local property market’s relative resilience...

And is forecast to continue to recover gradually during the course of the year.

Year-on-year growth in mortgage advances came in at 3,9% in February 2010, unchanged from January. This is based on data released by the South African Reserve Bank...

A few years ago, when the sugar price was in the doldrums and the property market was ablaze, Tongaat Hulett, with its successful strategy of turning cane land into swanky property developments, was considered a far more interesting bet than stodgy old Illovo with its sugar cane farms...

The following tips from an experienced property professional could help buyers make the right decisions in the coming months...

Sales of residential properties are showing a definite upward trend, and home sellers should take advantage of the situation by aiming for quicker sales rather than raising their asking prices...

It is now only a matter of weeks before South Africa is launched onto the world’s stage and becomes the flavour of the month to a global, televised audience of hundreds of millions of ardent football fans as the country hosts the greatest sporting spectical ever held on the continent...

Tough times over the past two years have prompted many private property owners to become landlords, and now low interest rates and prices are also bringing buy-to-let investors back into the market...

Lower interest rates don’t always mean that homeowners should upgrade to bigger and better properties. If they have built up substantial equity in their homes, it may be time to access some of it and make alternations or improvements instead...

Several of the residential areas lying to the north west of Johannesburg – notably North Riding, Randpark Ridge, Weltevreden Park, Northcliff, Fourways and Bryanston – are now experiencing the worst rental stock shortages they have ever been through, says Sean McCauley, Rawson Properties Northern Region Director...

Truly the undiscovered jewel of the Cape, steeped in history and tradition, tucked away in the foothills of the Hawekwas Mountain Range, close to Paarl. Various attractions and historical sites...

The rebirth of Woodstock

Baumann’s and Pyotts played an intrinsic role in the commercial life of?Woodstock for decades. The warmly evocative scent of baking used to waft over the suburb if the wind blew in a certain direction...

A definite improvement in the Johannesburg residential property market is evident in the latest results posted by the six Sotheby’s International Realty offices operating across the city – and the interest rate decrease this week is likely to give it a further boost...

Relocate to the coast and save

If you’re looking for a more relaxed lifestyle and a reasonably priced property to go with it, living in a coastal holiday town could just be the answer...

School holidays and long weekends like those coming up in the next month are the worst times for home burglaries – and even homeowners in secured environments such as cluster developments or residential estates need to take special precautions at these times to avoid becoming victims...

Even when it becomes law in October, the new Consumer Protection Act will not give homeowners in residential estates unlimited rights to do as they please without regard to the management and conduct rules of their homeowners’ associations (HOAs)...

Market-related valuations of homes for rates adjustments are again the subject of heated debate. Homeowners say the system is unfair and municipalities should find other ways...