Sectional title market in the Southern suburbs outperforms most asset class properties
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The Southern suburbs have traditionally been a mainstay of the Cape property market, returning solid and dependable growth year-on-year. The area is renowned for its excellent placement as it is surrounded by some of the best educational institutions, lifestyle destinations, eateries and historical sites that Cape Town has to offer.
The development of sectional title property has revolutionised the property industry by allowing buyers to invest in quality-built homes that are excellent investments but not difficult to maintain.
CEO of Greeff Christie’s International Real Estate Mike Greeff says, “The sectional title market in the Southern suburbs has proven to be one of the most steadfast markets during the last six months. While other markets in the Cape may have shown a slowing in growth due to the period of market correction, the sectional market has continued to yield growth and has shown itself to be a market that is indeed a force to be reckoned with. Furthermore, our very own sectional title team in the Southern suburbs continues to record one success after the other, fuelled by the areas they operate in and the market share they have generated and managed.”
Sectional title property is defined as including apartments, homes within a security complex and homes on a sub-divided piece of land. The most immediate and obvious benefits of purchasing a sectional title unit would be the safety, security and peace of mind that comes from living in a space that has controlled access, state-of-the-art security measures and on-site security presence. The other, less spoken about benefit is the general lack of responsibility for exterior property maintenance by the buyer.
Section 3(1)(b) of the Sectional Titles Schemes Management Act 8 of 2011, which came into effect on 7 October 2016, requires a body corporate to establish and maintain an additional reserve fund, which is sufficient to cover the cost of future maintenance and repair of the common property; the benefits of which are starting to be seen, as purchasers looking to buy sectionalised units can have more faith in the running of the Body Corporate. All owners of units pay a monthly or annual fee towards this collective upkeep of the complex to the Body Corporate, who then undertakes all maintenance on behalf of residents. The Body Corporate also acts as an enforcer of rules and regulations.
Greeff Christie’s International Real Estate have a dynamic sectional title team that specialise in sectional title property located in the Southern suburbs. The team led by Tim Greeff and Michael Greenwood has a unique ethos that lets them harness individual team members’ skills while expanding the group in order to create a more well-balanced and adaptable team. This comprehensive approach has seen them achieve far above average success rates in terms of sales and repeat referral business.
Some impressive feats show that this sectional title team, over the last 12 months have sold their properties in an average of 33 days, which is 13 days less than the Southern suburbs average of 46 days. This paired with their market share of 20.61% in Kenilworth, 22.32% in Rosebank, 21% in Rondebosch, 19.71% in Mowbray, 5.5% in Claremont and Claremont Upper and 24.7% in Newlands, is ample evidence of their unique selling proposition, offering highly innovative and progressive marketing strategies.
Tim Greeff notes that, “Although property growth has changed from very bullish in the last few years to a more stable return in recent times, returns for the asset class are still outperforming the banks, and the team are still achieving 97% of their marketed prices.
“In the last six months, we have noticed that while the market has only previously been described as either a buyer’s market or a seller’s market, we feel that currently the market is in an equilibrium state whereby both the purchaser and the seller are realistic with regards to pricing, and the stakeholders in the industry are communicating and advising effectively in the market place which is allowing for both parties to leave a negotiation in a mutually beneficial manner. We also foresee activity in the market to pick up substantially as we go into the 3rd and 4th quarters of this year.”
The team comprises of individuals who have pursued other tertiary studies in fields such as marketing, business studies and property studies. With this, these individuals are further skilled to put their additional qualifications to use. Current team members are Tim Greeff, Michael Greenwood, Greg McDonald, Garrick Sutton, Mikayla Morkel-Brink, Rico Barlow and Matthew White.
The unique mix of traditional real estate practices combined with their fresh approach to business has cemented their roles as reputable estate agents whom are pioneering the industry as they continue to forge their own successful paths.
Author: Greeff
