“A few years ago, the typical property investor in South Africa was male and between the ages of 30 and 40, but latest figures reveal a significant change in who is investing in property in South Africa. Now, it is young women who are driving the investment market. It’s a shift that bodes well for a housing market recovering from a pandemic during an economic downturn,” reports the Property Professional.
Deborah Justus, who has 40-years’ experience in the property industry, says Renprop has definitely noticed a trend of women increasingly acquiring homes and investment properties, particularly those valued under R1.5m. “Recently, some of our sales have shown young female professionals buying a second property. One to live in and raise children, and a second as an investment property,” she says.
Providing more detail on who these buyers are, Justus says a lot of them are young upwardly mobile Black women whose careers are starting to flourish due to greater inclusion in the economy.
“Society is now creating a platform for them to increasingly be more independent. These young professionals are generally aged between 23 and 35 and from a wide range of industries - from banking to healthcare,” she says.
Another factor that may be behind an increase in women buyers in general is the high divorce rate in South Africa, with Justus saying that many woman buyers are also looking for homes for themselves and young children following divorce.
But more than that, women are also looking increasingly to create their own wealth and a property portfolio is one great way to do so to benefit from the consistent returns the sector has to offer.
“What is good to see, is that women are thinking of future generations by investing in a property portfolio and are now starting to leave a legacy by growing a portfolio,” says Justus.
With interest rates at historical lows and property becoming increasingly more affordable, even more women will now be able to make inroads in residential real estate, but Justus concludes that prices will not remain as attractive for much longer, and now is the time to buy.
