08-05-2025
South Africa's residential property prices surge: 5. 0% inflation recorded in December 2024
A residential property that was for sale in Marlberton, South of Johannesburg.
Image: Simphiwe Mbokazi
South Africa's annual national residential property price inflation was 5.0% in December last year, an increase from 4.9% in November 2024.
This is according to the Residential Property Price Index (RPPI) December 2024, released by Statistics South Africa on Thursday, which shows that the residential property price index (RPPI) increased by 0.4% month-on-month in December 2024.
'The main contributors to the 5.0% annual national inflation rate were Western Cape (8.6% and contributing 3.1 percentage points) and Gauteng (2.3% and contributing 0.9 of a percentage point),' it read.
The RPPI for all metropolitan areas increased by 4.8% between December 2023 and December 2024.
The main contributors to the 4.8% annual inflation rate for metropolitan areas were said to be City of Cape Town (8.1% and contributing 2.7 percentage points) and City of Johannesburg (3.4% and contributing 0.7 of a percentage point).
The RPPI for properties sold for the first time increased by 5.2% between December 2023 and December 2024. The index increased by 0.5% month-on-month in December 2024.
The RPPI for resold properties increased by 5.3% between December 2023 and December 2024. The index increased by 0.5% month-on-month in December 2024.
The RPPI for sectional title properties increased by 3.4% between December 2023 and December 2024. The index increased by 0.4% month-on-month in December 2024.
The RPPI for freehold properties increased by 5.7% between December 2023 and December 2024. The index increased by 0.5% month-on-month in December 2024.
Commenting on this data print, Dr Roelof Botha, an economist and economic advisor to the Optimum Investment Group, said the latest residential property price index for South Africa, published by Stats SA, is not aligned with two key indices generated by private sector property indices.
He said both the BetterBond House Price Index and the FNB House Price Index were at levels below 5% for December 2024, reported by Stats SA.
