Upper Highway is increasingly popular

THE decision to head up the hill to the greenery of the upper Highway is not a difficult one. Begin by comparing property prices, sizes and value, then add the superb schooling, cooler temperatures and family lifestyle, and the decision is made. The upper Highway is not a single suburb with a single identity, but a vast area comprising several differing suburbs from horse country terrain to stylish, contemporary homes in golf and gated estates. The range of properties, prices and amenities is wide, meaning there is something to fit everyone’s pocket and lifestyle.

The outer fringe is tantamount to being in the country and large horse-friendly properties in Summerveld and Alverstone are typically in the R15 million range. First-time buyers will find affordable homes in Crestholme and Waterfall for around R850 000, while in gated estates like Cotswold Downs, Plantations or Le Domaine retirement village, the broad range of property sizes and prices shift between R1m and R10m.

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well against the northern suburbs. Take Cotswold Downs, where buyers get excellent value compared with a similar home or plot at Mount Edgecombe, Zimbali or Simbithi. In the first seven months of this year, average selling prices at Le Domaine rose 16 percent against the same period last year with no stock available. The economic downturn has had no impact. Cotswold Downs saw the average selling price for land in the nine months to September increase 15.4 percent comparatively, while elsewhere in the upper Highway, prices have shifted from an average R1.517m in 2012 to R1.86m two years later. From an investment perspective, these figures make the region increasingly popular. Construction on shopping centres like Wavecrest Shopping Mall in Waterfall shows development confidence – at 40 000m2 it will be larger than La Lucia Mall.

Residents in the upper Highway choose the area for the same reasons – and it is a significant drawcard that there are as many affordable homes as luxury units for the more affluent end. Wakefield is Wakefields Real

Estate CEO.