[imagesource: Cape Town Etc Gallery]

A word to the wise to Capetonians who are looking to get a foot in the property market.

Don’t have a look at what you can get in and around the city and then see what the same figures will buy you in Jozi.

I’ve seen friends share listings from up north with pools and spacious gardens for prices that will hardly get you a lock up and go anywhere with a half-decent view of the ocean.

Oh, we have a mountain too, Vaalies, and don’t you forget it.

When it comes to rental prices it’s no surprise that the Western Cape also has the country’s highest average price, evident from the figures in PayProp’s latest rental index.

Covering the second quarter of 2022, BusinessTech reports the group tracked rental growth up in April, May, and June:

For the first time since 2017, all nine provinces recorded year-on-year (YoY) rental growth.

PayProp also noted that various factors, including the recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, house prices, housing shortages, development, short-term rental listings and the overall economic performance of the country, could affect rental growth rates.

The average rental price in the Western Cape now sits at R9 462 a month, up 3% YOY, although that figure is only marginally higher than the Q1 report.

Surprisingly, following a 9% increase YOY, the Northern Cape (R8 626) is now the second most expensive province to rent a house or apartment in the country.

KwaZulu-Natal sits third (R8 443) and Gauteng is fourth with an average rental price of R8 319.

The cheapest province remains the North West (R5 468) followed by the Free State (R6 328).

National data shows the average rental price increased by 2,6% in the second quarter of 2022, giving an average national figure of R7 971 per month.

That’s before you’ve bought a single unit of electricity, with prepaid users, as well as those who are ‘off the grid’, in for a shock if proposed tariff changes go ahead.

[source:bustech]