DURBAN - With direct British Airways flights to London and the return of the renowned City Surf Series event to Durban, the city is going all out to present its best credentials to the world as a prime global coastal destination.
Michelle Burger, Pam Golding Properties area principal in Durban, said, "Our tourism benefits greatly from these coups and having the WSL surfing contest back in Durban is another feather in the city’s cap as not only does tourism flourish with competitors and spectators flooding the beachfront, it has brought back confidence that the city is on the map for these international contests".
According to Burger, Durban’s housing market has seen a steady increase in activity in recent months. According to the Pam Golding Residential Property Index, eThekwini Municipality is currently experiencing the strongest recovery in house prices.
"We are seeing well-priced listings selling quickly and also close to asking price, while we’ve also had a couple of sales where properties have been snapped up in one to two weeks," said Burger.
Sandra Gordon, Pam Golding Properties senior research analyst, says according to Lightstone statistics, the majority of homes in Greater Durban are freehold (60.3%), with 59% of current homeowners having owned their properties for 11 or more years, indicating a stable housing market.
“However,” says Gordon, perhaps the most interesting aspect is that from November 2017 to October 2018, nearly half of recent buyers were under the age of 35 years.
In October (2018), statistics from ooba reveals that first-time buyers again accounted for over half of all their mortgages extended. Gordon says this rebound and growing presence of first-time buyers is fuelling an increasing demand for 100% bond applications.
Value for money
Certain parts of Glenwood and Morningside also offer great value for money.
In Morningside, the average sales price for an apartment is just over R1 million which would fetch a neat two-bedroom apartment, while the average house price in the area is R2.3 million for a three-bedroom home with a garden.
On North Beach, the bulk of the apartments are share block, with a frontline two-bedroom apartment costing in the region of R2 million upwards. South Beach remains more affordable with a two-bedroom apartment one row back from frontline priced in the region of R650 000. Due to its accessible prices and sectional title units, South Beach is popular with investors.
Major facelift for Point Waterfront development
The Point Waterfront development is achieving the highest selling prices with a number of sales over the R4 million bracket. Further good news for Durban is that a R35 billion waterfront facelift is underway at the Point development. This will include an extensive promenade stretching along the beachfront, a residential tower, retail mall and a hotel.