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SA seeks to speed up land reform
Mail&Guardian - South Africa
South Africa is set to seize two more white-owned farms, one of them run by a church, to fast-track land reforms to rectify apartheid-era imbalances, a top land official said on Monday.

"The minister [of agriculture and land affairs] has signed the notices of expropriation and they have been sent. The owners have 30 days to respond, following which we will begin expropriation procedures," chief land claims commissioner Tozi Gwanya told Agence France-Presse.

Gwanya said one farm was located near the mining town of Cullinan, where the world's biggest diamond was found, and the other in the Northern Cape province.

"The claimants to the Cullinan farm are two local families, while the local African Pniel community is staking claim to the Northern Cape farm, which is owned by the Evangelical Lutheran Church of South Africa," he said.
Mail&Guardian

Nedbank in €40m housing loan deal
Business Report - South Africa
The availability and provision of loans to the affordable housing sector is set to get a boost after yesterday's signing of a €40-million (R386-million) subsidised loan agreement between Nedbank and French government development agency AFD.

Tom Boardman, Nedbank's chief executive, said the deal would in effect provide finance for about 4 000 low-income households.

The financial services industry in South Africa made a commitment to the government in its charter to provide R42-billion in loans for low-cost housing by 2008.

June Tudhope, the managing director of Nedbank Home Loans, said Nedbank's share of the R42-billion was R8.8-billion and it had already extended loans to this sector worth R5.6-billion.
Business Report

V&A Waterfront: Why were foreigners the highest bidders?
Rode's Property News - South Africa
So, if the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront is such a valuable asset, why weren't local companies outbidding their foreign counterparts to keep it in local ownership?

Unpacking the winning bid of R7,04 billion leads one to two possible reasons for the winning investment offer, says Erwin Rode, CEO of Rode & Associates property economists and valuers. When one deducts the project's undeveloped bulk (approximately 45% of total granted development rights) from the value of the V&A Waterfront deal, the remaining income yield is less than 4%.

The question that immediately comes to mind, is how can such a low yield make this a feasible investment proposition?
Rode's Property News

There's more than one way to sell...
BusinessDay.co.za - South Africa
The South African selling public is taking more control of the sale of their properties, no longer handing the sale of their biggest asset over to a realtor and sitting back, hoping for the best. Some are prepared to help their agents, others are simply taking over and doing it themselves.

Neels Fourie, the owner of a family estate in Pretoria, is currently marketing his property, in anticipation of emigrating. "I decided that my magnificent property needed a special introduction to real estate agents, as well as to potential buyers - and I'm probably the best person to describe all the wonderful aspects of this piece of land, which my extended family currently lives on," he says.

Fourie has compiled an 8-page brochure about his property, 'Kiepersol', that describes the three houses and various lifestyle amenities in detail, alongside professionally styled photographs. "I will approach realtors with the brochure, presented with a covering letter and information printed on a custom-designed letterhead. I've also commissioned a website, which will reflect the same design ethos, and will also have additional photographs of the property that we couldn't fit into the brochure," he says.
Business Day