The construction industry in South Africa has been brought to a halt by the spread of Covid-19.

Bloemfontein is experiencing a surge in residential property transactions concluded by young home buyers, particularly first-time buyers, who are snapping up homes mainly in the price band below R1million, says Ulrich Sirgel, area principal for Pam Golding Properties.

While the overall risk environment has heightened since last year, a strategic focus on balance sheet management and a relentless pursuit on delivering sustained value is providing Redefine with a buffer against the economic challenges.

As anticipated, President Cyril Ramaphosa spoke to the urgency for economic growth and the need for a serious and sustainable increase in the employment rate in his State of the Nation address last night. 

On any given morning, especially during the academic year, it’s near impossible to find a parking space in Stellenbosch.

Many South Africans are of the mindset that it is better to purchase their own home - if they can - rather than rent, and effectively pay off someone else’s bond.

While the number of international buyers in residential property in South Africa remains relatively low, at somewhere in the region of three percent nationally, investors from elsewhere on the continent – including returning expats - retain their appetite for the acquisition of South African real estate for a variety of reasons.

A decade after the global financial crisis, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Investment Risk Forum (IRF) - which comprises more than 40 of the world’s most influential real estate investors - has found that diminishing returns are driving real estate investment diversification.

JSE-listed diversified Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) Redefine Properties (JSE: RDF) has reported a solid  performance for the full year to end August 2017, after lifting full year distribution 7% to 92 cents per share.

It is relatively straightforward to make a good property investment when the economy and housing market are booming.