Rising interest rates have challenged the property market in recent years with many aspiring homeowners forced to put their dreams on hold and new buyers qualifying for smaller bonds than they had hoped.Even though the repo rate has held steady and the hiking cycle is believed to be over, market activity will remain subdued it starts coming down.But it is not all about interest rates; there are a number of...
South Africa’s first-time homebuyers have had a tough time entering the property market in recent years thanks to high interest rates and living costs, but this has not stopped them from staying the course.In fact, despite the challenges, they are managing to put down higher deposits than they were a year ago; the average price they are paying for their first home is, therefore, also higher.Data from...
If you dream of living a new life in another country but don’t have the right passport or heritage to do so, you could gain foreign citizenship or residency simply by purchasing a property.Granted, the ‘simplicity’ is in the fact that you can acquire rights to live in another country by investing in property there, not in the cost it entails.If you do have the money, however, to purchase a home in...
More South Africans are being forced to sell their homes as high interest rates and rising living costs make it impossible to keep hanging on.In the last quarter of 2023, almost 25 percent of homes listed for sale were due to financial pressure; this means that one in four properties with ‘for sale’ signs outside their doors has distressed families or individuals living under their roofs.To put this...
There's a major sense of accomplishment that goes hand-in-hand with buying your first home, but most first-time buyer advice focuses on things like saving for a deposit and navigating the purchase process.There is very little information shared about what happens next and what to expect, says Arnold Maritz, co-principal for Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty in Cape Town’s Southern...
Liaising with an estate agent to buy or rent a property can be complicated, especially if you end up needing to work with more than one, or even rival agencies.But you have the right to work with as many real estate professionals and agencies as you like when looking for the right home – and an agent should never make you feel like you are obligated to work only with them.South African real estate agents...
Property owners and buyers must be mindful of their expenses this year as interest rates look set to remain high and livings costs are expected to keep climbing.Homeowners who are struggling to keep up with their bond repayments are also urged to reach out to their banks as soon as possible.While economists and property experts predict that the interest rate will hold steady at 11.75 percent at the end of...
South Africans will continue feeling the pinch this month – and for the foreseeable future, as interest rates are not yet expected to come down.The best we can hope for is a repo rate hold which will keep the prime lending rate stable at 11.75 percent.The good news, though, is that this is the bad news. A rate hike would be worse.While the repo rate will probably not increase following the Monetary...
Choosing a retirement property can be a daunting prospect as you need to consider location, cost, amenities, and healthcare services.Crucially, you also need to decide what type of ownership scheme you are buying into are some of these.The two options most commonly offered by retirement developments in South Africa are sectional title or life rights ownership.They differ significantly on the matter of...
Interest rates are expected to remain high this year but fixing your home loan rate to compensate for any nasty surprises may not be your best idea.It may even be a downright bad decision.This is because a fixed interest rate should be a choice based on your appetite for risk, not the fluctuation of the prime lending rate.If you believed otherwise, however, you can be forgiven. In fact, when the interest...
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