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| Cape 2010 Stadium Plan Wins Approval |
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A special sitting of the Cape Town city council has approved the final building plans for the city’s 2010 World Cup soccer stadium in Green Point
With tight deadlines facing the city, construction is already five weeks ahead of schedule, but the city is still being haunted by a legal challenge from activist group, the Cape Environmental Protection Agency (CEPA).
The challenge seeks to review the legality of the various provincial and council decisions taken in the lead-up to secure the new stadium site on the Green Point Common.
The hearing was "indefinitely postponed" after it was found the scale and complexity of the case and the work, which had to be done before it could be heard, meant that lawyers would not be ready on August 13.
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| Cape Town Convention Centre to get R800m Growth Boost |
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Cape Town's highly successful international convention centre had been given the go-ahead to start an estimated R800m expansion
Rasool confirmed that Public Works Minister Thoko Didiza had said at the weekend’s presidential imbizo in the province that her department had agreed to put Customs House “at the disposal” of the centre.
The convention centre last year hosted 46 international conventions and the joint partnership between the province and the city council had been a runaway success story, attracting thousands of business tourists in the meeting, incentives, conferences and exhibitions sector, seen as the key to boosting SA’s tourism industry.
Rasool said at the opening of the Southern African Association for the Conference Industry’s national conference in Cape Town on Monday that negotiations had been in progress for the past two months with Didiza on the future of Customs House.
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| Traffic a Key Factor in New Property Developments |
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It will become increasingly important to invest in property close to work, business nodes and key transport routes
As congestion on South African roads increases , residential property areas situated on major transport corridors and near businesses are going to become sought after “hot spots”, says John Loos, property strategist at First National Bank.
Loos says this situation is going to happen increasingly rapidly over the next five to 10 years.
“I t is realistic to expect that by early next decade we could have a million new vehicles coming on to the roads each year. At the moment, it is nearing 700000. ”
He says it will be increasingly important for investors and home buyers to invest in property close to key places of employment and business nodes, as well as key transport routes. Such properties are “probably first prize” for residential property performance as they will be highly sought after.
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| Freehold Property Outperforms Sectional Title |
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Latest Lightstone house price index shows that owners of freehold houses have earned much higher returns on their properties over the past three years than investors who bought sectional title townhouses, apartments and flats
Latest house price data released by various banks and other industry players confirm that the widely anticipated slump in housing sales and prices has yet to materialize.
But not all sectors of the residential property market continue to perform equally well. Latest house price index released by Johannesburg-based mortgage risk management company Lightstone shows that owners of free hold houses have earned much higher returns on their properties over the past three years than investors who bought sectional title townhouses, apartments and flats.
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| Property Developers Await Final Decisions on Inclusionary Housing Policy |
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After months of waiting, South African developers will soon be hearing the final outcome on the national housing department’s policy on inclusionary housing
The proposed final draft of the government’s policy on inclusionary housing is currently being negotiated between the housing department, commercial property association SAPOA (South African Property Owners Association) and other industry stakeholders, and its results are imminent.
Inclusionary housing refers to government ordinances that require a given share of new construction and development to be made available to low and lower-middle income groups. Taking the form of a mandatory or voluntary ordinance, many cities internationally subscribe to inclusionary housing policies and include countries throughout Europe, the UK, the USA, Canada, Australia, Malaysia and China.
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| Strong Demand for Lower-End Property |
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The lower end of the residential property market, particularly houses valued below R600000, appears to be experiencing the strongest demand from prospective buyers
“The affordable housing market is where demand is. There is a shortage of stock in this segment but that developers are entering this segment, Clarke says. “There is also a shortage of serviced land sites and that adds to the cost of developing because land is more expensive. This is adding to the challenge of delivery.”
Clarke says the property values in the lower end of the market will continue to grow. “ There were 300000 jobs created last year and probably the same number of informal jobs, which can only add to the demand for lower-end housing. W e also have increased costs on the building supply side. That will also increase values. “Entry level buyers should enter the market as quickly as possible, otherwise they will become tenants forever.”
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| Lower House Price Growth Recorded in June |
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Property Trends - House Price Index
Growth in house prices in the middle segment of the market (see explanatory notes) declined to a nominal 14,9% year-on-year in June 2007, according to the latest Absa House Price Index.
This brought the average price of a house to about R924 800 in June. Nominal price growth was 15,4% year-on-year in May. In the first half of 2007 average nominal house price growth of 15,5% was recorded compared with the same period last year.
Real year-on-year growth in house prices of 7,9% was registered in May (the lowest growth since February 2003 when it was also 7,9%) compared with a revised growth rate of 8,1% in April, based on the headline consumer price index. In the first five months of
2007, real growth in house prices averaged 8,7% year-on-year.
| Absa Group Economic Research, 03-07-2007 |
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| Green Building Council Announced for South Africa |
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SAPOA CEO Neil Gopal announced at the 39th SAPOA International Convention, the establishment of a Green Building Council for SA, a move that will bring the commercial and industrial property industry in line with global environmental practice
The mission of a Green Building Council is to promote and encourage environmentally sustainable practices in the property industry through, as Gopal points out, market-driven solutions. Green Councils in Australia, New Zealand, the US and Canada also manage a certification system for new and existing buildings.
“The Board fully supports the establishment of a Green Council in SA,” says SAPOA CEO Neil Gopal, who attended the Green Building Council of Australia’s annual conference in February for preliminary talks on the way forward.
“As an industry, we need to start thinking seriously about the environmental impact of developments – and we need to think green concepts within development plans in advance of government regulations,” says Gopal. “We must ensure that government alone does not set the regulations.”
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| Claremont Upgrades Central Area |
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The cranes are flying in Claremont Central - Claremont's Business District. They provide the obvious symbol of some R2-billion of private sector investment that is creating new office, retail and residential development in the area
The City has been working with the CIDC on proposals for upgrading the entire public environment of Claremont Central and a two-year study by consultants has been completed. Officials hope to obtain Council approval for its recommendations by the end of the year. The public consultation process now underway is an important step in this process.
A public participation programme, including exhibitions and a public meeting, has also been formulated.
The study's proposals see the streets and squares of the area being reclaimed for pedestrian use, with residents benefiting from a selection of treed outdoor places, where birds and birdsong replace motor cars and tarmac.
| Claremont Improvement District Company, 02-05-2007 |
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| Tourism Encourages Interest in South African Property Market |
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Foreigners are definitely showing a stronger interest in SA’s property market, particularly the hotel and leisure property sectors
Pace Property Group MD David Green says the interest in the hotel and leisure market is due to the fact that the country is becoming a popular tourist destination and investors consider SA to be “undersupplied” with quality hotel accommodation.
“Generally there is a trend throughout the world to seek investments in emerging economies such as eastern European countries, Asia and southern Africa.”
But the South African property market still has a way to go in terms of the size of the property transactions available.
Green says a recent single European transaction was equivalent to, if not greater in size than, any of SA’s largest JSE-listed property funds.
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