Don't fret about the future of SA's property industry

Grant Holton,a founding director of HQM Properties

This combined with the past economic growth in South Africa has meant more and more residential properties have been built over the last two decades. This has led to an increase in the demand for quality property management companies.

We believe property makes up the cornerstone of wealth preservation in any country. South Africa is no different. Whilst the appreciation of property was set back considerably by the 2008 global recession, Cape Town has shown continued excellent growth and returns of around 10% per annum. We are firm property “bulls” and feel as an asset class it offers security and is an excellent long-term investment.

SA property market in 2020

Regardless of the economics of the country, the fact of the matter is South Africa’s population is growing. By 2020 a larger, younger movement of citizens will continue to flood into urban cities looking for jobs and a better lifestyle.

To cater for this the cities will need to make provision for more medium to low cost housing, and by doing so would likely keep the existing markets very much buoyant well beyond 2020.

As such the demand will exceed supply and lead to an increase in rental and sales prices over the long term.

Challenges for SA property managers

SA property managers will face challenges related to efficiency and delivery over the next year. There is a lot of competition as the industry has matured and current margins are squeezed. More now than ever property management companies need to become lean.

The new challenges will be to stand out from the competition through better service delivery, with enhanced use of technologies and heavier investment into training good people to deliver this service.

Opportunities on the horizon

There is always room for improvement. With modern technology we have had an upsurge in applications and ideas, but bringing these altogether in a logical systemised manner is key.

The industry is becoming more automated from lease reminders to bill payments, and it may sound far-fetched, but property inspections conducted by a small drone may not be too far in the distant future!

Advice for first-time home owners

Before purchasing a home it's worth getting an independent inspection done on the property to assess possible defects and get an estimation of the cost to have these repaired.

Secondly, it may be worth ensuring there are property plans with council that are approved and no part of the dwelling has been illegally erected or altered.

Thirdly, once taking ownership ensure that you receive documentation of any warrantees still in place. It is absolutely golden to get a file of all property information including contact details of previous contractors that have worked on the site as this will save you a run around in the future.

Lastly, make an effort to meet the neighbours – often having your neighbours on your sides ensures a happier living space as we all look out for each other’s homes.