Adjustments to transfer duty on property in the 2016 national Budget are to impact only the upper end of the residential property market.

In the past year, home prices in the first-time buyer sector have grown only half as fast as they did in the previous 12 months, according to the latest statistics from BetterLife Home Loans, SA’s biggest mortgage originator.

Property values have continued to grow in the past 12 months, with the average home price showing a year-on-year increase of just over 5% to R971 000 at the end of November, according to the latest statistics from BetterLife Home Loans, SA’s biggest mortgage originator.