Last year was second place for the record number of property registrations in Plettenberg Bay after the exceptionally good year in 2021; early 2023 sales figures indicate that the market is due to retain its buoyancy as the uptick in semigration fuels potential for another record-breaking year.
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The property market in this scenic town continues to trend upward, with its housing prices still on the rise amid stock declines, says Steven Neufeld, Manager Principal of Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty Plettenberg Bay, in his assessment of the market boom that continues to encourage buyers and incentivise sellers today.
“In 2021, the total value of sales broke the R2 billion mark for the first time in history, a whopping 82% up on 2020, with the number of sales increasing by 44% and average prices rising by 26%,” said Neufeld.
He adds that 2021 brought record sales for most estate agencies where many previous records were doubled and whilst market activity in 2022 slowed somewhat, the upward trend in prices continued.
“Observing the first quarter of 2023, we can tell that the 2022 sales figures have carried themselves to the present date. Sales are looking excellent, and stock is decreasing.”
Owner Broker, Hein Pretorius, says: “We are down to about a fifth of the stock levels that we had 10 years ago against a much higher demand.
“A decade ago, there was a high volume of vacant land available and a tremendous amount of building is taking place although we expect some of the vacant land to come back onto the market as building prices have increased rapidly and continue to climb.
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He adds that the vacant land sales would have decreased the average sales prices for full title property whilst apartments have performed particularly well, although there is practically no stock of sectional title units left.
“The Plett Quarter in Main Street, which is currently under construction with completion expected in December 2023, added a little to the stock, but it is already 70% sold out. Thulana Gardens recently launched and should commence construction later this year. There are a couple of other planned developments launching soon, but they haven’t come online yet.”
Entry-level asking prices have seen considerable increase over the past 4 years, with it now being difficult to find full title homes below R3,5m. Sectional title unit prices start at R1,4m. Vacant land starts at about R500,000 in gated estates and R800,000 in open areas.
“It is a good time to sell as the market appears to be peaking which is not surprising after three years of semigration to area. That said, demand is still high for correctly priced properties and, for buyers and there is very little available for further development. So, if you see something you like, act quickly. Currently, it’s still a case of ‘if you snooze you lose’”.
Top current publicised asking prices for residential properties on the market are as follows: R65million for a house on Look Out Beach, R60million for a beachfront home on Beachy Head Drive, R27.5million for a large piece of land with development potential in the Cutty Sark area, and R10,79million for an apartment above Look Out Beach. Top prices will, of course, fluctuate considerably depending on what is on the market at the time.
Click here to see all the sale and listing price trends in Plettenberg Bay
This boom in property transfers is not nucleated only to Plettenberg Bay. Last year, Knysna saw both a record-breaking number of property registrations and median sale price of houses. George also logged record median sale prices in 2022. The property market of the Garden Route Coastline, in general, is on the up and up and it looks to be on track for another bumper year.
According to Neufeld, these increases can be attributed to several factors, such as rising levels of semigration, the emerging capacity for people to work remotely, better-perceived governance in the Western Cape, and thriving sales in the upper end of the market.
Pretorius says: “It is a good time to sell if you are thinking of doing so as there are many buyers and dwindling stock so you can achieve a decent price for your property.
“If you are thinking of buying, the sooner the better, as asking prices are rising, stock is declining and in the long-term Plettenberg Bay will always retain its popularity.”
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South Africa's Prime Suburbs according to the Africa Wealth Report 2023:
According to the Africa Wealth Report 2023. released by Henley & Partners in partnership with New World Wealth Global intelligence firms, there are approximately 3,700 homes in South Africa that are valued at over USD 1 million (as at December 2022). By this measure, South Africa ranks as one of the 20 largest prime residential markets in the world, well ahead of the other countries in Africa and in line with big emerging markets such as India and Brazil.
Just over 40% of South Africa’s million-dollar homes are located in the ‘Prime 7’ suburbs of Cape Town, namely Bantry Bay, Bishopscourt, Camps Bay, Clifton, Constantia, Fresnaye,
and Llandudno.
Although Cape Town suburbs dominate the list, it should be noted that square meter prices in certain parts of Hermanus and Plettenberg Bay are beginning to catch up with those in the Mother City.
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