The quaint Cape south coast village of Gansbaai, located just outside Hermanus in the heart of the Cape Whale Coast, is back in demand with holiday, retirement and even foreign buyers looking to stake their seaside claim.
Situated in Pearly Beach, this home offers four bedrooms, three bathrooms, an open plan kitchen, a built-in braai, garden and garaging for three cars. It is on the market for R2.4 million – click here to view.This is according to Ronel Claassen, Seeff’s agent in the area, who says it is such a beautiful part of the Cape and it is well worth investing in a home here, especially now before prices hit the sky.
She says the bulk of sales still fall around the R1 million mark and you can get a house in the village for under R1 million, and under R3 million closer to the beach. Even a seafront property will only set you back about R5 million compared to R10 million for a similar sized home and setting in nearby Hermanus.
Following the post-2008 decline, Claassen says demand for property in and around the village, in the last year especially, has seen a turnaround. She says where they had over the last few years found that holidaymakers would look around, but make no firm commitment or offer until later into the New Year, if at all, the past December has seen most of these actually put pen to paper.
Consequently, Seeff, for example, concluded the sale of 12 properties in the month of January alone, quite unheard of, says Claassen.
This Perlemoenbaai house has three bedrooms, three bathrooms, underfloor heating, a TV lounge, undercover balconies, a swimming pool and double garage. It is priced at R4.995 million – click here to view.“Our market comprises largely of about a 50/50 split between holiday and retirement buyers. We find that younger, pre-retirement age buyers often initially invest in a holiday home and then later tend to retire here.”
Foreign buying in the village has never really been much of a factor beyond the odd sale during the year, mostly to UK and European buyers, says Claassen.
In the last two years though, she says they have seen a few sales to foreigners, mostly between R2.5 million and R5 million, including the sale of holiday homes for R2.65 million and R2.75 million to German and Belgian buyers respectively.
The highest price achieved for a home in the last year was R4 million, while a tract of vacant land also sold for R4 million to buyers from Germany. A BBE group bought a 32ha piece of land zoned for a resort for R3.2 million.
The agent believes that aside from the scenic beauty, much of the allure of the area lies in the fact that it is still mostly devoid of large-scale commercialisation, despite the fact that there are now excellent tourist facilities on offer in the area.
This seafront home has two bedrooms, one bathroom, a kitchen, family room, separate flat and a garage. It is on the market for R3.255 million – click here to view.Gansbaai is regarded as one of the best whale and shark (Great White Shark) spotting areas in the world. Then, there’s the spectacular cliffs of De Kelders with luxurious on-the-rocks beach houses that tend to attract wealthy buyers.
There are stretches of white sandy beaches that abound in the Pearly Beach area, and the village itself has two harbours where fishing trawlers come and go daily.
Other attractions include Shark Alley, an abundance of seals and the Penguin colony of Dyer Island. The area is of course located in the heart of the Cape Fynbos Biome and is surrounded by beautiful stretches of unspoilt Cape fynbos.
The world-famous and much photographed Danger Point Light House is yet another attraction.
Gansbaai still has plenty to offer buyers, says Claassen. One of the original old Fisherman’s cottages, still with its original Oregon doors and floors that has been beautifully restored and renovated is on the market for R2.4 million.
It overlooks Walker Bay where you can see the fishing trawlers come and go, and includes two bedroom suites and an upstairs loft in the main house, as well as a study and braai room. There is also a two bedroom garden cottage, outdoor barbeque area, swimming pool and an old fig tree in the garden.
Situated in De Kelders, this house offers five bedrooms, five and a half bathrooms, an indoor braai, saltwater swimming pool and two garages. It is on the market for R2.95 million – click here to view.If you are looking for a modern beach house with top class finishes, there is a spacious four bedroom home in popular Perlemoen Bay on the market for R2.93 million.
The home comes with large open plan areas and stack-back doors leading to a wooden deck and saltwater pool. Additional features include an office, underfloor heating in the downstairs bedrooms and air-conditioning in the lounge and main bedroom, solar heated geysers, water storage tanks and grey water recycling plus stunning sea views.
Another excellent opportunity is a 4-star guest house in Pearly Beach with six bedroom suites, only three are registered, but there is potential to extend this. It boasts fabulous sea-view balconies, a manager’s suite and staff accommodation. It has modern finishes, beautiful bathrooms, furniture and décor. It is priced at R3.5 million and is just a short stroll to the beach.
At the top end is a lovely Cape Cod-styled beach house for R3.75 million. It has a fynbos garden, panoramic sea views and a living area that connects via folding doors with the veranda that runs the full length of the house. The kitchen has a pantry and separate scullery and laundry. There are four bedroom suites as well as two loft areas for additional living or sleeping space, an outdoor shower, garaging for three cars and more.
Those looking for an exclusive beach house in De Kelders could look at a Nutec built home on the shores of Stanford Cove Beach overlooking Walker Bay. Priced at R10 million, it comes with a large open plan living area with a fireplace, six bedrooms, including a large main suite that opens to stunning ocean views, modern shutters, a wooden deck and swimming pool.
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