DA plans housing vouchers
The DA wants a housing voucher that will enable South Africans who earn between R4‚000 and R15‚000 to build or buy the home of their dreams.
Contained in its manifesto is a proposal to award vouchers that beneficiaries can use to build their own homes or use as security to finance bonded properties.
Should the DA win the election on May 8, the proposed voucher would be broken down into three salary categories.
South Africans earning less than R4‚000, would qualify for a voucher of up to R150,000. Those who earn less than R10‚000 would qualify for 60% of R150‚000‚ while those who earn above R10‚000 would qualify for 40%.
Known as the “missing middle”‚ people in these income groups often struggle to own property because they are considered too poor for home loans by finance institutions‚ but too wealthy for free RDP houses.
Addressing about 20‚000 supporters at a manifesto launch held at the Rand Stadium‚ in Johannesburg‚ DA leader Mmusi Maimane said the proposal would allow South Africans who had been excluded from the property market, to own land and houses.
“It [ownership] allows you to borrow money against the property‚ it allows you to pass it on to your children in your will‚ and it allows you to sell it‚ if you so choose‚” said Maimane.
“I want South Africans to have a choice‚ which is why we will introduce a housing voucher which people can either use to build their home or as a down payment on a house.
“You will find estate agents in Alexandra and Khayelitsha‚ and not just in Sandton and Constantia‚ because property will have value wherever you go‚” he added.
He said beneficiaries would be able to build their own homes on government-serviced sites. The other option would be for beneficiaries to use the R150‚000 as deposit to buy an already existing home. Beneficiaries could also use the money to buy land for the purpose of building a home or use the money to upgrade their homes‚ located on land they already owned.
“Our task now is to build a SA where no one is left out. That’s where we come in. It is a SA that can only be built by a DA government‚ and I assure you it will not take another 25 years‚” said Maimane.
He slammed the ruling ANC elite for driving fancy cars and living flashy lifestyles at the expense of the poor.
Maimane said his party dreamt of putting jobs in every home in SA.
He said under the DA, the country would have secure borders that would make it impossible to enter SA illegally.
Maimane said a South Africa under the DA would also be energy secure.
He told supporters that a DA government would sell off state-owned enterprises that did not work‚ eradicate corruption‚ slash the cabinet in half and stop wasting money on unnecessary luxuries in order to build a SA that all dreamt of.