Buyers flocking to Langebaan and the West Coast
The small West Coast towns and villages are no longer just for holidays and retirement, as more people are moving into areas like Langebaan, Yzerfontein, and further afield to St Helena Bay and Elands Bay, according to agents from the Seeff Property Group.
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The beautiful fishing villages, many with white-washed Cape vernacular architecture have seen a strong shift in sales activities during the market boom of 2021/1. The migration of wealth to the West Coast is seeing prices of up to R5m to R8m being paid for luxury homes in Langebaan.
People working or with businesses in Saldanha and Vredenburg, as well as those who come to the West Coast for contracts and other business reasons, often prefer to settle in places such as Langebaan.
This has boosted the Langebaan property market where transactions worth over R1.3bn were recorded for the 12 months to the end of September, according to Lightstone data.
Given the proximity to Cape Town, under two hour’s drive, Langebaan is a popular weekend getaway, and many Capetonians own homes, or rent Airbnbs. Families are also moving there, and now have access to a Curro School.
Places like Malmesbury have benefited from the upgrades to the N7 Cape Town to Namibia Route that runs through the region. Given that it is only about a 40-minute drive from Cape Town, many people choose to settle there and commute daily.
Lightstone data shows the West Coast property markets boomed during the 2021/2 period resulting in notable growth in median prices over the last five years, doubling in areas such as Yzerfontein and Paternoster, while areas such as Langebaan, Malmesbury and St Helena enjoyed a notable uptick.
Most towns experienced growth of 60% to as much as 107% and even 196% over the last 10 years, according to the data.
West Coast property boom
Yzerfontein currently boasts the highest average transaction price of R3.1m followed by Langebaan at R2.3m. The West Coast is more popular with buyers and investors than ever before, according to Seeff’s agents. Jaco and Tracey-lee Coetzee, from Seeff Langebaan say that correctly priced high-end properties are still attracting buyers.
Over the last year, Seeff has sold apartments in Marina Village for R3.55m and R3.75m, and luxury homes in Calypso Beach for between R6.9m and R8.8m.
These were mostly holiday homes and apartments including a South African expat from Canada who purchased a holiday home. The beautiful Club Mykonos remains popular. The highest demand is now in the R1.5m to R2.9m range, including new developments, according to the agents.
Source: Supplied.
The rental market is also very active with plenty of rentals available, according to Mariska Le Roux and Mariszka van der Linde, from Seeff Langebaan. The average rental is between R10,000 to R12,500 for small properties, and R16,000 to R24,000 for three-bedroomed properties. Estates and high-end suburbs range from R25,000 to R30,000 per month.
Yzerfontein market insights
The Yzerfontein market is quite seasonal and is expected to pick up again, according to Michelle Livingstone-Louw and Nelia Retief, from Seeff. There is no less demand for high-end properties and land, despite the high prices and slower market.
Yzerfontein Heights III though remains in demand with plots selling for R1.05m to R1.3m, and plot and plan packages at R3.585m and R4.1m for a luxury, three-bedroomed house.
Rentals are always in demand in Yzerfontein which often exceeds the supply. Rental prices range from around R12,000 (apartments) to around R30,000 at the top end for a luxury house.
Paternoster is also not priced at the higher end with a median price of R1.9m. Saldanha, Vredenburg and Malmesbury tend to offer more affordable prices, and also attract younger buyers including families.
Buyers in Yzerfontein, Langebaan, and St Helena Bay tend to be older, comprising a mix of holiday and retirement buyers. Although Elands Bay is a low turnover area, with only about a dozen sales annually, most recent buyers (77%) were over 50.
