The Cape Town property boom may have slowed down, with some recent reports showing the slowest growth rate since the end of 2009, but that doesn’t mean buying a house is anywhere near affordable.

The boom started in areas like the Atlantic Seaboard and the CBD, but gradually gravitated outwards. Anyone who bought property a decade ago in the likes of Woodstock is counting their blessings, because those prices really have spiked.

There is still some value for money to be had, but you need to reach a little further afield. Maitland, for example, is only around eight kilometres outside of the CBD, as opposed to Woodstock’s two-and-a-bit, but you get plenty of bang for your buck.

Let’s compare two properties going for around the R2 million mark to illustrate some points.

First up, there’s a three-bedroom, 370 m² house in Maitland, listed on Private Property for R2,2 million:

Not to be missed!!! Beautiful, Charming & Spacious family home, consisting of 3 large Bedrooms , main bedroom with an en- suite bathroom, huge open plan living area with lounge, dining room and kitchen. Huge family bathroom, fully tiled with shower, bath and hand basin. The modern kitchen with large scullery plumbed for your appliances.

The property is secured with automated gates and under cover parking for 5 cars. Newly tiled roof. Property is located to M5 Business Park and the M5 Freeway.

No disrespect to whoever took the photos on the listing, but they’re not too flash.

Still, you’re getting a spacious home, parking for five cars, and some other perks. Not bad for a shade over two bar. There’s also some decent rental potential, on top of the fact that you’re living in a secure house with a realistic price.

Then we look at another Private Property listing, in Woodstock, which is slightly cheaper at R1,9 million. This one’s a two-bedroom, 76 m² apartment on Fairview Avenue:

Located on the fourth floor of a well-managed and secure block, this stylish two-bedroom, two-bathroom corner apartment offers beautiful views of Cape Town.

This flat is absolutely perfect for entertaining! The first thing you’ll be struck by as you come in is the ultra-modern and chic white open-plan kitchen. The large lounge is drenched in natural light from the floor-to-ceiling windows, and leads out onto a balcony which offers panoramic views of the city.

Both bedrooms are spacious and have plenty of built in cupboards, with the main bedroom being en-suite. The big shared bathroom includes a bath as well as a shower.

The building has a communal rooftop deck to enjoy summer sundowners with your friends, and benefits from 24-hour manned security. It’s super conveniently located within a 5 minute walk from the trendy restaurants and coffee shops of Roodebloem Road, 10 minute walk to The Old Biscuit Mill, and a 2 minute drive onto the N2.

The finishes are modern, and that view from the balcony would be worthy of far too many sundowner drinks.

Clearly going for the younger, sans-children buyer, but you’re getting about a fifth of the floor space to be five kilometres closer to the CBD.

Ultimately, these properties are clearly looking at different buyers, but it’s interesting to note that there’s still the chance to snap up a three-bedroom house, within 10 kilometres of the CBD, for around R2 million.

For those who don’t want their dreams crushed, avoid the ‘Can I afford this?’ tab on the listings…

[sources:privateproperty&privateproperty]