Pinelands rejuvenated as younger investors buy and update city’s garden suburb

JUST 10 minutes’ drive from the Cape Town CBD, easily accessible from the N1 and N2, lies Pinelands – Cape Town’s original garden suburb: shady, tree- lined avenues; spacious properties and some iconic thatch-roofed architecture.

Pinelands is renowned for peace and tranquillity, and till recently, its elderly population.

“In the past, Pinelands was always a firm favourite with retirement-aged buyers,” says Anthony McCarthy, sales agent at the Rawson Property Group’s Pinelands franchise. “It’s still got some extremely popular retirement facilities, but lately we’re seeing a lot more interest from younger buyers, who are noticing the good value and great family lifestyle Pinelands has to offer.”

With a number of wellregarded pre-primary, primary and high schools within walking distance of most Pinelands homes, and a great selection of local shops, sports clubs, medical facilities and restaurants, it’s easy to understand why families are drawn to the area. The predominantly freestanding houses with larger-thanaverage erf sizes also offer more space and privacy than many other Cape Town suburbs – a very attractive feature.

“Pinelands was the very first town-planned garden city in South Africa,” says McCarthy. “The layout and infrastructure was specifically designed to facilitate a green, tranquil and healthy living environment, and that makes it very popular with people who want to get away from the densification taking place in other Cape Town suburbs.”

Families looking for a house in Pinelands can expect to pay from R1.7 million to R5.5m, and will, on average, get an erf of 800m or 900m2. Old Pinelands, with its original Tudor-style thatch-roofed houses, is even more spacious – but also more expensive – as are the homes backing onto the Mowbray Golf Course in what is known as the Champagne District.

The rest of Pinelands varies in price according to proximity to its periphery, the size, quality and design of the house.

Families aren’t the only young buyers becoming more active in the Pinelands prop- erty market, with sectional title properties in demand among singles, first-time buyers and buy-to-let investors.

“You can find sectional title properties for as little as R600 000 or R700 000 in Pinelands,” says McCarthy, “with easy access to freeways, hospitals, schools, financial institutions and UCT. That makes them very convenient as starter homes or excellent rental properties, and that demand continually outweighs supply bodes very well for growth potential.”

An interesting side-effect of the influx of younger buyers in Pinelands is the increase in renovations taking place, as older, fifties-style homes are snapped up for their potential.

“There are a lot of well-built houses on lovely grounds that haven’t yet been updated,” says McCarthy, “and we’re seeing a lot of buyers investing heavily in upgrades and updates that are turning these into modern homes. It’s a rejuvenation process that will make Pinelands even more attractive to buyers in future,” he says.

This trend is predicted to continue in spite of the uncertain economic climate, and McCarthy says that buyers appear undeterred by the increasing interest rates.

“Prices are continuing to increase at an average of 6 percent a year,” he says.