KNOW YOUR ’HOOD
Each week we take a look at a different South African area or town, and this week it’s the centrally located and convenient Cape Town suburb of Mowbray
NITTY-GRITTY
• Mowbray village was established around 1853 on a farm called Welgelegen in an area that was then called Driekoppen. The name Mowbray is thought to come from the new English owners of the Welgelegen estate, who originated from Melton Mowbray in England. The oldest building in the area is Mostert’s Mill, reportedly the only complete windmill in South Africa, built in 1796. • Not quite as close for the morning school run as Rondebosch and Rosebank yet still within easy range of top southern suburbs schools, including Rustenburg and Rondebosch, Bishops and Marist Brothers, Mowbray is a gem of a low-key suburb with competitively priced homes and easy access to major transport routes. • Mowbray is really central as Cape Town suburbs go and to hop on to the highway heading to town or outwards on to the N2 or to link to the N1 is easy. For commuters to the city, Mowbray also has a convenient train station on the southern suburbs line. • The area is popular with university students, who appreciate the easy access to the University of Cape Town (UCT), and young professionals who like the relative proximity to the city’s bright lights. • Craig Algie, area specialist with Seeff for Mowbray, says: “We have found that once people move into Mowbray, they tend to stay there. The central location and proximity to UCT, the airport and the CBD are major factors influencing people’s decisions, as well as the value that they get for their money.” • According to Algie, the most popular part of Mowbray is the area known as Little Mowbray, which is bordered by Klipfontein Road, the M5 and the N2, and split in half by Raapenberg Road. “There is a small pocket of Mowbray on the Rosebank side of Klipfontein Road encompassing roads such as Langton, Clarendon, Park and Landseer. In Little Mowbray proper, the soughtafter roads are Muswell Hill, Richmond, Twickenham and Cheltenham.
“However, Mowbray is a suburb filled with lots of little pockets that offer lovely gems. Above the Main Road there is a small pocket incorporating roads such as Glencairn and Welgelegen, which are delightful. We have also experienced an increased interest in Belmont Street, Grove Road and the Long Street part of Mowbray because of the great value there.”
PRICE POINTS
In keeping with the demographic mix ranging from students to established families, Mowbray is an area of vast differences on the price front. Algie says: “You can find quaint cottages or semi-detached houses of about 120m2 to 150m2, which sell for about R1.1-million to R1.5-million. In the Little Mowbray section there are houses from 300m2 up to 700m2 and the prices can range from R1.6-million up to R2.8-million.
“Recently there have been a couple of houses on the market that are very close to the R3-million mark, but they tend to be the exception. There are limited sectional-title options in Mowbray going for anywhere from R500 000 up to R1.5-million.”
IN THE MARKET
According to Algie and Seeff, the percentage difference between listing price and selling price in Mowbray varies anywhere from 5% to 20%, depending on the seller’s expectations.
About the average time on the market, Algie says: “A lower variance in asking to selling price normally indicates a short time on the market, so anywhere from 10 days to two months. Southern suburbs statistics suggest anywhere from two to four months.
“Because of the vast difference in the type of properties in Mowbray, there is something for every type of buyer in the R1-million to R2.5-million range. All parts of Mowbray are showing good, steady growth.”