The really strong demand for homes in the Durbanville, an area with 16 separate suburbs, is now focused on the R1,8 million to R2,5 million bracket – very little below R1,8 million is available here – and in this price bracket, says Louis Schoeman, the Rawson Property Group’s franchisee for Durbanville, the majority of buyers have now come to terms with the reality that prices this year have been rising at anything from 10% to 15% per annum and, driven by severe stock shortages, are likely to continue to do so.
“This mindset,” he said, “is one for which there can be very little justification. If I look at the quality of Durbanville’s more expensive homes, the large size of the residential erven, the attractive, fully mature landscaping (very few suburbs have as many trees as we do), the good schools, retail centres, sports facilities, golf courses, restaurants and the whole outdoor lifestyle that this area makes possible, it is clear to me that every one of the more expensive homes for sale here is at the moment seriously underpriced.”
Recently, said Schoeman, some of the upmarket buyers have come around to realizing this – and he predicts that within the next year more will awaken to the simple fact that the more affluent homes selling in Durbanville now are priced at bargain levels – by any standards.
This thinking, added Schoeman, is supported by two facts: firstly, in Brackenfell new two and three bedroom homes are now selling at R2 million, but there can be no comparison, in his view, between the attractions of Durbanville and Brackenfell; secondly, in Durbanville’s Eversdal suburb it is possible to buy a three bedroom home for R2,2 million – although prices here for the undeveloped plots that these homes are on are pitched at ± R1,6 million. In Durbanville’s Aurora, said Schoeman, the situation is much the same: a home here can still be bought for R2,2 million to R2,4 million, but the erf will cost R1,4 million.
Although stock is hard to come by in Durbanville, Schoeman said that his 15 agent team has, at any one time, 60 to 70 homes for sale.
On the bond front, said Schoeman, careful prequalifying by the agents and the fact that most Durbanville buyers are high earners and are either upgrading or scaling down (and therefore have capital from the sale of their existing homes) has resulted in most of Rawson Durbanville’s bond applications in the last eight months being accepted.
The other good news, said Schoeman, is that the franchise will be one of those selected to sell homes in a new mega-development at Graanendal on the northern side of Durbanville.
“On the rental front, too, stock shortages are now widespread in Durbanville. New rental stock is, in most cases, signed for within 48 hours,” said Schoeman, “and rents are rising year-on-year as never before.”
This franchise now has ± 65 homes under their management and is confident that they will increase this number.
Two or three bedroom homes in Durbanville are renting at anything from R8,000 to R20,000 per month.
It is now just over two years since Schoeman took over this franchise. In that time he has raised the staff complement from five to 15 agents supported by three administrators. The turnover this year is on track to be 100% up on last year.
“I was fortunate to move into this area at a time when it was becoming accepted as one of the best places to buy in the whole of the Greater Cape Town area. This, I believe, is still the case and this gives me and my team great confidence for the future.”
