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Price growth lowest in years - latest bank stats
Moneyweb.co.za - South Africa
Interest rates put brakes on property market, with NCA pain still to come.
Amid fears that the National Credit Act (NCA) has put the brakes on residential property sales, latest statistics show price growth slowing to its lowest in almost eight years.

ABSA House Price Index figures released for June confirm that the property boom appears to be firmly behind us.

South African residential property showed the lowest nominal month-on-month growth in June, with a figure of 0,6%, since September 1999 when it was 0,4%. Price growth was around 0,8% in May this year.

ABSA senior economist Jacques du Toit said the slower price growth probably doesn't reflect the full implementation of the NCA, which was from June.
Moneyweb

Xit2 chosen by Lloyds TSB Hong Kong
Mortgage solutions - UK
Lloyds TSB Hong Kong has announced plans to incorporate the Xit2's Conveyancing Portal into their application process to provide the online system to manage their conveyancing instructions.

The Conveyancing Portal is a totally automated 24/7 web-based database application that unites lenders, estate agents, brokers, IFAs, borrowers and conveyancing solicitors and brings even more time savings into their mortgage process.
Mortgage solutions

Loophole in Act hampers housing project
EP Herald - South Africa
In a blow to the embattled Jacksonville housing project, it has come to light that housing beneficiaries are still selling their houses at a rapid rate due to a loophole in the Housing Act.
The Jacksonville project came under the spotlight in 2002 when Amakhaya Construction withdrew after a number of beneficiaries were unhappy with its work and on the basis of alleged irregularities. Jacksonville housing committee chairman Llewellyn Smith said the number of beneficiaries who were still selling their homes was of grave concern to the committee.

The Housing Amendment Act No 4 of 2001 - which came into operation in February 2002 - prohibits the sale of government-subsidised houses to any individual unless it has been in that person's possession for more than eight years.
EP Herald

New credit law makes its mark on consumer spending
Business Report - South Africa
If there is a law that will stop consumers dead in their tracks, it is the National Credit Act (NCA).

The credit law, which came into force in June, has already had a pervasive effect across all types of loans. Applying for a loan has become an even more bureaucratic process and is not only taking longer than before but is more likely to end in disappointment.

The latest motor vehicle sales bear testimony to the impact of the NCA, with new vehicle sales falling by 12.1% in June compared with the same period last year.

Chris Harmse, the chief economist at investment management firm Dynamic Wealth, says the law may push credit growth to below 20%.

The NCA impact is also expected to hit securitisation - where lenders such as banks and credit retailers effectively sell their loan books to investors. Securitisation has boomed by piggybacking high loan volumes.
Business Report

Free-riders drag down the horse
Business Day - South Africa
As next year's deadline for the settlement of outstanding land claims approaches, the pace of land transfer accelerates across SA. Whether or not the deadline is met, there are signs that, far from transforming the livelihoods of dispossessed rural communities, the restitution process is resulting in enterprise failure, land degradation and deep disillusionment among its intended beneficiaries. The government's response has been to emphasise the need for more "post-settlement support" for land-reform beneficiaries. More pragmatically, officials increasingly encourage or even oblige beneficiaries to enter so-called "strategic partnerships" with a variety of private investors, managers and mentors. While these approaches have limited outright failure, they overlook the basic problem - flawed institutional and legal arrangements around which beneficiaries exercise their interests as owners and managers of their land.
Business Day

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