SA's property market shines amidst the chaos
Category From Our CEO
Hello Everyone
As we all know, real estate markets are heavily influenced by interest rates, the cost of living, employment rates and consumer confidence. They are also notoriously cyclical, in different areas at different times, as regards supply, demand and pricing. This can all be difficult to keep track of if you're not a real estate professional, and in periods of rapid change it can feel quite chaotic and confusing, especially if you're trying to make a personal decision to sell or buy.
Negative headlines and the bleak picture of the economy being painted by the media are also adding to consumers' uncertainties at the moment but at Chas Everitt we firmly believe that there is always opportunity in chaos. And accordingly, we have specifically developed both the vision and the means to help our clients look past the "noise" and maximise the real estate opportunities that currently exist in SA.
These include the chance for investors to start or add to a portfolio of rental properties while prices are slowing or dropping, especially if they are able to buy with cash, and we have the expertise not only to analyse the rental market and identify the areas likely to deliver the best returns, but also to find quality tenants and manage their rental units.
Economic shifts, demographic changes and unexpected events can also give rise to new real estate markets in previously overlooked or underdeveloped areas, and with 43 years' worth of market knowledge, we are also able to flag these areas and demand trends for the entrepreneurs, developers and investors among our clients who are looking for longer-term growth potential.
Meanwhile, we know that home sellers may not be as pleased as investors when the rate of price growth slows down, so we have developed unique pricing and marketing abilities to help them conclude a successful transaction and get into a position where they can also derive the benefits of lower prices.
These abilities encompass our affiliation to Leading Real Estate Companies of the World, which gives us referral links to more than 500 top brokerages employing 125 000 agents across 70 other countries, as well as our own proprietary digital marketing programmes, which effectively enable us to reach anyone in the world with an internet connection - or about 4bn people.
This is exceptional for a property company in SA and in practical terms it means, for example, that home sellers can now very quickly downscale if they wish to a smaller home and achieve substantial savings, not only on their home loan repayments, but on the monthly costs of running their home.
On the other hand, we are helping a great many clients to navigate the current scenario to upgrade to a bigger home or a more expensive area, as is evident from the rising number of high-end and luxury home sales we are achieving in Johannesburg, Cape Town and other major economic hubs.
We are also gaining market share in almost every area in which we operate, while continuing to attract the industry's top talent, and this is undoubtedly due to the fact that we are specifically not a one-size-fits-all company. On the contrary, we have made it our culture to recognize and applaud the unique needs and aspirations of every client, and to apply our time and energy to tailoring individual solutions to meet those.
Despite the fact that we are the undisputed leaders in real estate technology in SA, we are also always mindful that our success is rooted in our "people first" values and in building sustainable relationships with our clients. This is the approach that enables us to see and present a very different view to the general gloomy perception of the market at the moment, and to thrive by always providing each client with the correct information and expert guidance they need to make profitable real estate decisions.
Author: Chas Everitt