Negativity seems to have become the fashion in SA’s real estate industry over the past few months, but while there will be challenges, the property market is not going to “fall off a cliff” in 2018, says Berry Everitt, CEO of the Chas Everitt International property group.

With much still riding on the outcome of the ANC elective conference later this month (16-20 December 2017) which, coupled with the Budget Speech in February next year (2018), will impact on business and consumer confidence and market sentiment in general.

Standard & Poor's Global Ratings has again downgraded SA's foreign and local currency ratings by one notch each to BB and BB+ respectively.

The Reserve Bank on Thursday kept the repo rate unchanged at 6.75% per annum, Reserve Bank Governor Lesetja Kganyago said.

The first three quarters of 2017 saw building activity in the South African market for new private sector-financed housing (see explanatory notes) contracting in both the planning and construction phases compared with the corresponding period last year, based on data released by Statistics South Africa.

According to StatsSA CPI (Consumer Price Index) figures, residential rental inflation has been outstripping average house price inflation of late.

The value of outstanding credit balances in the South African household sector continued to show relatively low growth in the first nine months of 2017, rising by 3,3% year-on-year (y/y) to a level of R1 522,6 billion.

Third quarter statistics (Q3 2017) from ooba, South Africa’s leading bond originator, show nominal positive growth of 3.3% on Q3 2016 in the average House Purchase Price.

A “lack of vigour” may be the best way to describe current performance across the full spectrum of property in South Africa.

The Sectional Title Home Market appears to be opening up a wider gap in terms of the house price inflation differential between itself and that of the Full Title Home Market.