As at the end of October 2019, the national house price inflation index was at 2.9%. After a long streak of unrivaled outlying performance, the recent slowdown in the Western Cape has seen it join the ranging market and come second to the optimistic Limpopo province that has just broken out with an annual growth of 5.9%.
The Western Cape has been and still is the best destination for semigrants but the sentiments are slowly changing as indicated by the slowdown of its property market. This market is hugely dominated by the City of Cape Town municipality which over and above the price correction has taken hit from rising crime stats, the recent water crisis, local government uncertainties and looming competition along the east coast. Limpopo province on the other hand has seen an increased demand for high-end properties most of which have become second homes to the wealthy Gauteng residents. There is also a considerable amount of mining activity in the province driving up the demand to house workers, and several new developments are to meet this demand. Our inland municipalities Ekurhuleni, City of Tshwane and City of Johannesburg metros are growing stably at rates between 1% and 4% whereas the coastal municipalities are generally performing above this range.
This relationship extends to all coastal and inland properties as shown by their respective indices. The Low and Mid value wealth segments continue to buck the trend by growing at more than 4% annually whilst the rest are inflating at rates below that.
