Cape Town tops list of SAs most exclusive addresses
Cape Town may not be the financial epicentre of South Africa, but it continues to dominate the list of most exclusive addresses, and data provided by Lightstone Property has revealed that the Mother City lays claim to three of the five most elite addresses in the country.
This six bedroom house in Clifton, Cape Town, offers triple volume ceilings, two gas fireplaces, underfloor heating, air conditioning, a media room, wine cellar and an elevator. It is on the market for R85 million - click here to view.
This is according to Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty CEO, Lew Geffen, who says this is because luxury property in Cape Town is still in high demand by foreign buyers who dominate the top-end of the market, and by South Africans wanting to live in a region with higher levels of basic service delivery.
According to the Lightstone research, the most expensive street in South Africa currently is Nettleton Road in Clifton, where the median price for houses is R27.1 million, followed by Glen BeachRoad in Camps Bay with an average house price of just under R24 million. Head Road in Fresnayetakes fourth place with an average selling price of R21.44 million.
Sandhurst in Johannesburg scoops third and fifth places with a median sale price of just under R25 million in Coronation Road and R20.76 million in Rivonia Road.
Geffen says in the list of most expensive addresses in the Western Cape, not surprisingly, four of the five most pricey are situated on the sought-after Atlantic Seaboard, with fourth place taken by Eastcliff in Hermanus.
To determine the value of the streets, Lightstone uses a valuation model based on repeat sales and comparable sales which takes inflation indices and applies them to a property’s previous sale price to bring the historic purchase price to current value.
This property in Fresnaye, Cape Town, has five bedrooms, a study, gym, bar and an outdoor entertainment area with braai. It is on the market for R35 million - click here to view.
“The upswing on the Atlantic Seaboard started in 2002 when a property in Chilworth Road in Camps Bay sold for R23 million, but the demand for luxury homes began to peak 2008 when 13 properties in the R20 million plus price band changed hands to the combined value of R414.193 million,” says Geffen.
“In spite of the credit crunch which hit in 2008, property values on the Atlantic Seaboard have continued to grow exponentially and now it is not only home to the most trophy properties in South Africa, it also fetches the highest price per square metre.”
In 2008, Clifton was already enjoying the highest rand value per street at R30.680 million, which was boosted by three outstanding sales: one inKloof Road at R45 million, another in Nettleton Road at R27.4 million and on Third Beach Road a house sold for R26.8 million.
Brendan Miller, Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty Atlantic Seaboard CEO, says the steady growth in both sales and prices peaked in 2014 when the Deeds Office logged a record number of sales in the R20 million-plus price band.
“Last year, 28 luxury properties to the combined value of R819.3 million changed hands, which was 98% higher than 2008 in terms of rand value and 108% higher in terms of units sold,” says Miller.
This home in Camps Bay, Cape Town, offers five bedrooms, open-plan living areas, a study, elevator and outdoor entertainment area. It is priced at R25 million - click here to view.
“The highest prices were realised by two properties in Fresnaye. A house in Avenue Deauville which sold for R64.8 million and another in De Wet Road for R56 million.”
Miller says there has also been a notable upward shift in the market. The eight top prices achieved in 2008 were all in the R20 million to R30 million price band, except one sale of R45 million, but 2014 saw 18 sales in this price range, as well as nine sales in excess of R30 million, two of which were for more than R50 million.
“The trophy home market has been marginally slower this year, with only 12 sales to a combined value of R373.65 million recorded at the Deeds office during the first eight months. However, the highest sale price realised was more than R100 million in Nettleton Road.
“The suburbs which have enjoyed the most sales in this exclusive price band to date areBakoven, Bantry Bay, Camps Bay, Clifton and Fresnaye,” says Miller.
Geffen says Cape Town may be home to the most luxury properties in South Africa, although data from New World Wealth shows that Johannesburg still has the most dollar millionaires in the country.
However, an increasing number of wealthy Gauteng buyers are investing in property on the Atlantic Seaboard and commuting to Johannesburg, or buying second homes and properties for short-term rentals which yield high returns, he says.