As Yael Geffen, CEO of Lew Geffen Sotheby's International Realty, notes, despite the US Federal Reserve cuts rates, the South African Reserve Bank is navigating a far more complex reality, one directly impacted by the new US trade tariffs and the looming specter of further selective punitive sanctions.

“These external threats cast a long shadow over investment confidence, making domestic stability paramount.

“The MPC’s prudent pause provides a crucial foundation of predictability.

“In an environment of heightened global uncertainty and persistent domestic vulnerabilities, certainty in monetary policy is the bedrock upon which investment confidence is built – especially for a tangible asset class like real estate.”

Geffen says the SARB’s upward revision of the GDP growth forecast to 1.2% for 2025, even in the face of a weaker export outlook, is a positive signal.

“However, as Governor Kganyago rightly cautioned, we cannot overstate one good quarter. The real test remains attracting the ‘much higher investment levels’ required for robust growth. This is where the real estate sector offers a beacon of resilience.”

Geffen observes that the market is adapting, finding opportunity amidst the challenges.

“We are seeing that achieving a more robust growth trajectory will require much higher investment levels,” she says, “and we are witnessing a tangible expression of this in the strategic acquisition of property by both local and international buyers seeking a stable store of value in an uncertain global landscape.”

Geffen says while the dysfunction in administered prices like electricity continues to erode purchasing power, the property market demonstrates its unique ability to weather these storms.

“The decision to hold rates, coupled with contained inflation projections, means that real estate remains a compelling and secure investment for those looking to the country's long-term future, even as we navigate these significant political and economic crosscurrents.”