While the look ahead will be challenging for the South African property industry as a whole, there are still pockets of opportunity for investors, landlords and tenants, says Tim Cable, director, who now heads up the real estate sector in South Africa for global professional services consultancy, Turner & Townsend.

Commercial properties can host a variety of different tenants. What makes the property successful for both landlord and tenant will be whether the tenant mix works for everyone.

Under ideal circumstances, renting a property should be a smooth and hassle-free process.

The Western Cape High Court found in favour of a landlord who was owed in excess of R300 000.00 by a tenant due to the non–payment of electricity bills.

2014 ended on a positive note for landlords and rental agents, with 86% of residential tenants recorded as being in Good Standing.

JOSHCO makes Johannesburg a more liveable City by investing more than R1.8 billion

SA Corporate Real Estate Fund records 8.6% interim distribution growth than June 2013.

The final quarter of 2013 saw a worsening in residential rental performance, marking a worrisome change in tenant payment behaviour for the first time in nearly three years.

Many landlords and tenants feel that they have considered all the aspects of a future tenancy of premises. It is only years down the line that many side-effects of a lease agreement may come into effect, many of which may be negative.

With high debt-to-disposable income levels and the difficulty of obtaining a home loan still a factor, more and more South Africans are opting to rent property.