FINANCES BETTER VALUE

DOWNSCALING due to financial pressure is occurring, but no more than usual, says Re/Max’s Thiry Murray. It tends to happen in the southern suburbs, with sellers moving to Milnerton, Table View and the northern suburbs.

They are often moving from homes valued from R3 million to R4m into homes in the R2.8m to R1.6m range.

On the West Coast, about 20% of sellers are downsizing due to financial pressures, says Tamara Nettmann from Century 21. This is particularly being seen in the middle to lower-income areas, where house sharing is becoming an option.

“They are moving to new areas that offer better value, and often buying directly from a developer and saving on transfer duty. These areas include Parklands North, Sandown’s new area and Sunningdale.”

They are selling houses valued from around R3.5m, and moving to areas where most of the market is below R1.5m.

Nancy Todd of Rawson Properties says houses in the middle to lower-price ranges “sell quickly”.