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IOL News
2 days ago
- Business
- IOL News
Understanding the 5. 2 percent rise in South Africa's residential property price inflation for January 2025
Stats SA reports a modest increase in residential property price inflation across Mzansi. Image: Simphiwe Mbokazi The annual national residential property price inflation was 5.2% in January 2025, an increase from a revised 5.1% in December 2024. This is according to the Residential Property Price Index January 2025, released by Statistics South Africa (StatsSA) on Thursday. The data showed that the residential property price index (RPPI) increased by 0.4% month-on-month in January 2025. 'The main contributors to the 5.2% annual national inflation rate were Western Cape (8.7% and contributing 3.3 percentage points) and Gauteng (2.3% and contributing 0.9 of a percentage point). The RPPI for all metropolitan areas increased by 5.0% between January last year and January this year. The main contributors to the 5.0% annual inflation rate for metropolitan areas were City of Cape Town (8.5% and contributing 3.1 percentage points) and City of Johannesburg (2.3% and contributing 0.5 of a percentage point). The annual national residential property price inflation is generally a positive indicator for the local property market, says Dr Farai Nyika, an academic at the Management College of Southern Africa(MANCOSA). He said both property developers and existing homeowners depend on, and benefit from, sustained price inflation to realise returns on their long-term investments. However, he said that one significant consequence of rising property values is that municipalities periodically revalue properties, which often results in higher property rates for owners. 'For prospective property investors, it is important to note that real returns are only achieved when property price inflation exceeds the annual consumer inflation rate, inclusive of all associated costs (such as rates, taxes, maintenance, and transaction fees). Rising property prices also stimulate demand in related industries, including hardware suppliers, cement producers, and manufacturers of construction materials. This, in turn, supports job retention and the creation of new employment opportunities, which is particularly important in the context of South Africa's challenging economic climate,' Nyika said. The academic said that conversely, Cape Town is increasingly becoming unaffordable for many first-time buyers, placing them at risk of becoming perpetual renters. He said as people tend to 'vote with their feet', the city - despite being an attractive and desirable destination - continues to reinforce generational divisions along the lines of income and property affordability. The RPPI for properties sold for the first time increased by 6.0% between January 2024 and January 2025. The index increased by 0.3% month-on-month in January 2025. The RPPI for resold properties increased by 5.9% between January 2024 and January 2025. The index increased by 0.4% month-on-month in January 2025. The RPPI for sectional title properties increased by 3.1% between January 2024 and January 2025. The index increased by 0.4% month-on-month in January 2025. The RPPI for freehold properties increased by 7.1% between January 2024 and January 2025. The index increased by 0.5% month-on-month in January 2025. In a property note released this week, FNB said that looking ahead, the recent series of interest rate cuts is expected to mildly strengthen market conditions in 2025 compared to 2024. However, the bank said that a strong and sustained recovery will depend on achieving significantly improved economic growth. FNB added that it forecasts modest improvement, with growth rising from 0.5% in 2024 to 1.1% in 2025, and reaching 1.9% by 2027. It said it also anticipates that interest rates will likely move sideways for a protracted period following one more expected 25-basis-point cuts in the second half of 2025. While this expected mild improvement in the economic and interest rate environment is welcome, FNB said it may not be sufficient to support sustained real (inflation-adjusted) growth in property income and capital values through the forecast period to 2027. Independent Media Property
The Irish Sun
21-05-2025
- Politics
- The Irish Sun
‘We need homes for people, not seasons', fumes Mayo Council official over ‘radical' boycott plot of holiday-house owners
A HOUSING official has defended his call for a boycott of holiday-home homeowners. Tom Gilligan, the director of services for housing and roads at Mayo County Council, believes the move could bring high numbers of vacant properties back into use to help combat the housing crisis. Advertisement 3 Gilligan stressed that holidaymakers are 'welcome to Mayo' Credit: Getty Images - Getty 3 Tom Gilligan, the director of services for housing and roads at Mayo County Council Credit: Collect With CSO figures revealing there are 5,987 holiday homes in Co And as he hit the headlines, defiant Gilligan stood by his proposal today, declaring: "I do not regret the email. We need homes for people, not just for seasons." Gilligan explained: 'We are in the middle of a The Mayo housing official was asked if he regretted his use of the word 'boycott' in the email he sent to members of the local authority's Housing Strategic Policy Committee. Advertisement READ MORE IN MONEY But Gilligan insisted that he did not. He said: 'The word boycott has been around since the 19th century. It originated in Mayo. Governments have used it, individuals have used it to try and bring pressure in order to get things done. 'Nothing is off the table and we are looking at a number of options in relation to Mayo. "We're looking at the whole idea in relation to a holiday home tax, we're looking in relation to compulsory purchase orders.' Advertisement MOST READ ON THE IRISH SUN Mr Gilligan outlined why he felt compelled to send the email to members of the council's Housing Strategic Policy Committee which is made up of 11 members, seven elected councillors and four non-elected members. Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald slams Government over housing crisis He said: 'So I emailed them a proposal on Sunday night in relation to the whole idea of dealing with holiday homes and vacant holiday homes. 'According to the 2022 census, there are 5,987 holiday homes in Mayo. And in the middle of a housing crisis, we need homes for people, not just for seasons. 'So the objective around this proposed boycott is to highlight the impact of underused housing stock on local communities, encourage policy reform and taxation measures on vacant second homes. Advertisement HOUSE PRICES SOAR "And also as well to push holiday homeowners to either return properties for sale to the rental market or to the long-term rental market.' Gilligan maintained he is not trying to 'demonise' holiday home owners and stressed that people are 'welcome to Mayo'. Mayo County Council said the email was part of an 'internal discussion document in response to the SPC's request for a policy on this subject'. Meanwhile, property prices outside of Advertisement The national Residential Property Price Index has revealed that property prices in the capital rose by six per cent. The average price of a house in the 12 months leading up to March 2025 was €362,500. 3 Property prices outside of Dublin soared by 8.7 per cent in 2025 Credit: Alamy Stock Photo
IOL News
08-05-2025
- Business
- IOL News
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.
Extra.ie
27-04-2025
- Business
- Extra.ie
Rory Hearne: Why we need a French-style State savings scheme to fund 75,000 homes
Under this Government, Ireland's locked-out generation continues to be denied the most basic need – a home of their own , writes Social Democrats TD Rory Hearne. More storm clouds are gathering over our worsening housing crisis. The latest national Residential Property Price Index, published by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), showed that the median price of a home in Ireland is now €360,000 – more than seven times the average income. In Dublin, it's as high as €670,000. It's a sobering thought when you consider that house prices are now 20% higher than at their Celtic Tiger peak, putting home ownership out of the reach of most earners. Rory Hearne. Pic: Colin Keegan/Collins Dublin For the first time in our history, we are seeing young people forced to emigrate, not because of a scarcity of jobs, but due to their lack of hope of ever being able to buy a home of their own. In the past two years, there has been a 36% increase in the number of Irish citizens emigrating, with 70,000 people leaving our shores in 2024 – the same number as at the height of unemployment in 2010. This is hardly surprising when more than half a million young adults are stuck living in their childhood bedrooms, desperately waiting for their independent lives to begin. For those who just want a space of their own, the housing crisis is having a serious impact on their mental health, with many suffering from anxiety and depression as they put their hopes and dreams on hold. Today's generation, locked out of home ownership, is a generation without hope. The Government's social contract with the young people of Ireland – where the plan is that you are supposed to get an education, work hard, pay your taxes, and save enough money to have a decent life and buy a home of your own – has been shattered into a million pieces. There is stark generational inequality between older people who have owned a home for decades and the young adults of today, many of whom are holding back on making major life decisions, such as starting a family, because they have nowhere to live. Contrast this with the landlords and corporate investor funds that own multiple properties, most of which are prohibitively expensive to rent. Pic: Shutterstock But despite the scale of the housing crisis, we have seen no emergency response coming from the Government. Since the Celtic Tiger days, successive governments have treated housing as an investment commodity, relying too heavily on private developers and vulture funds instead of building social and affordable homes at the scale required. This has turned our young people into rental fodder for institutional investors. Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael claim they are the parties of home ownership, yet their approach to housing has caused the largest collapse in the number of people buying a home since the foundation of the State. Their policies serve institutional investors, large developers, property owners and banks. The Government is not concerned with making house prices affordable. Rising house prices and hiked-up rents are baked into these policies as they are deemed essential to 'incentivise' the market. It is against this backdrop that the Government is proposing to remove rent caps, all in the hope of attracting investment from vulture funds. If this is allowed to happen, rents will further skyrocket, and thousands more people will be plunged into poverty and homelessness. Pic:We urgently need a new direction to solve the housing crisis. That is why the Social Democrats have put forward a new policy proposal to set up a State savings scheme that would help fund the accelerated delivery of affordable homes. Under our plan, the Government would establish a Homes for Ireland Savings Account (HISA) to leverage the €160bn in Irish bank accounts for investment in affordable homes. Similar to the Livret A model in France, this is an innovative way of offering an incentivised savings scheme for Irish savers, while opening up a new source of domestic private financing for home building in Ireland. Funds raised through this savings scheme would be channelled through Home Building Finance Ireland (HBFI) and the Housing Finance Agency (HFA) to fund the building of affordable homes by SME builders, not-for-profit housing associations and local authorities. It could help deliver 50,000 affordable-purchase and 25,000 cost-rental homes over the next five years. The scheme would also represent a win-win for savers, with favourable interest rates and no Dirt tax to be applied to these accounts. This is the type of radical action required to offer hope to our locked-out generation. This Government, like its predecessor, likes to claim it is doing everything it can to solve the housing crisis, but nothing could be further from the truth. It's time for a new approach. This piece was written by Social Democrats TD for Dublin North-West Rory Hearne
