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Property Barometer - November 2015
FNB - South Africa
The Residential Market remained well-balanced in November, but economic data releases during the month pointed to near term weakness

November data again pointed to a well-balanced residential market, kept this way by reasonable demand and significant residential supply constraints. But the month also brought about economic data that clearly points to further deterioration as we head into 2016, and a high risk of recession. After nearly 4 years of economic growth stagnation, and no end in sight, the question is for how long the Residential Market can remain well balanced?
Property Barometer

PayProp Rental Index
PayProp - South Africa
Storm clouds gathering

We’ll start off with the good news – the average residential rental in South Africa held steady above the R6 500 level this quarter! This figure is currently at R6 508, but we should also note that there has been no upward movement in it since the previous quarter (ending in June 2015).

The stagnant growth has had far more than just a short-term effect. The background here is that long-term year-on-year growth in rentals has been rallying since January 2015, after a prolonged down-turn. Based on previous growth cycles we’ve been expecting the upturn to last until the end of the year at least, and growth rates to pick up from 5.04% in January to around 10%. However, as a result of the cessation in growth, this quarter effectively marks the beginning of a dip in year-on-year growth. Average growth dropped from 7.56% in June to 7.28% in July, and ended on 5.18% in September.
PayProp

Are property show days still worth it?
ReMax - South Africa
With nine out ten property shoppers looking for homes online, many real estate professionals have steered away from having traditional open show days. "Show days and their worth has become a somewhat controversial debate among agents," says Adrian Goslett of RE/MAX. "While some still believe that show days are an intricate and necessary part of marketing a home successfully, others feel that the marginal success rate coupled with the security risks are just not worthwhile."

He notes that there are merits to both sides of the argument. "Regardless of which side of the fence an agent stands on, both opinions have positive and negative attributes.

For example, a few advantages of having a show day are visibility and accessibility. It is also possible for show days to save both the agent and the seller some time, as numerous prospective buyers can view the property within the same day.
ReMax 

Court instructs Body Corporate to disconnect utilities
tpnRentBlog - South Africa
In this instance, the answer is not Eskom! Up to this point, the only approach to collecting arrear levies and utilities in sectional title schemes has been to follow the laborious debt collection process and wait your turn. Judgments and more importantly, attachments can take years to be effected! This could all but sink a body corporate … until now.

In the time it takes to get a Judgment, arrear levies can increase exponentially. In the past, a body corporate could not disconnect utilities when faced with the prolonged non-payment of utility accounts. Together, Michelle Dickens - MD of TPN Credit Bureau and Peter Mennen an associate at SSLR Inc., have had a major breakthrough in the Courts however!

Dickens and Mennen launched an application in the South Gauteng High Court last week. The application involved a claim for the full amount of R67 937.58 which was owed to the body corporate. It included a claim that should the owners not settle the debt immediately and in full, the body corporate could mandate contractors to terminate the electricity and restrict the water supply to the premises.
tpnRentBlog 

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