Foreign investor appetite for property still strong

THE COMMENTS by President Jacob Zuma in his State of the Nation address about the banning of foreign property ownership have failed to dampen enthusiasm for South African property among foreign investors.

Peter Welborn, the chairman of real estate company Knight Frank Africa, admitted yesterday that some of its clients were concerned about the comments, but Knight Frank was still telling them that South Africa represented a real opportunity, particularly because of the relative weakness of the rand.

Zuma, in his response to the State of the Nation debate, clarified that the foreign property ownership ban would only apply to agricultural property.

Welborn said many leaders in many countries made statements, some for real reasons and some for political reasons, which could create confusion among foreign investors.

“We are used to working in countries in Africa where there are even more confused messages,” he said.

“To South Africans the message might seem confused, but actually if you put an African perspective on it, it’s not that confused,” he said.

Welborn stressed that he did not and had not seen Zuma’s comments being an impediment to foreigners investing in property in the country.

“That is our recommendation to our clients, particularly on the basis that in sterling terms you are getting R18 to £1.

“And in the short to medium term, we see that exchange rate improving.

“If you get in at (invest at) R18 to £1 and it improves to R15 or R16 or even better, that alone is an opportunity,” he said. – Roy Cokayne