OVERVIEW
Construction and property Green is cool. SECTOR INSIGHT SECTOR INSIGHT Serviced land is being released for housing.
90 Rivonia Road has a four-star rating from the Green Building Council South Africa.
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edefine Properties’ third green bond was oversubscribed when it went to market in August 2023. An amount of R1billion has been allocated across three, five and seven years. Green buildings are now considered mainstream in the construction industry, and star ratings from Green Building Council South Africa (GBCSA) are expected in commercial, industrial and residential projects. The bond was listed on the JSE in the Sustainability Segment, a further sign that every sector is responding to the climate crisis. Redefine will use the bond financing to work towards decarbonisation of its portfolio through the reduction of energy consumption by making systems more efficient, collaboration with tenants and solar photovoltaic installations. The North Wing of 90 Rivonia Road is an example of Redefine property that is four-star rated by the GBCSA. Features include a climateresponsive facade, efficient air-conditioning and intelligent lighting, multi-level planting beds along with some passive design elements. Township landlords are to be integrated into the real estate sector by means of loans from provincial government that will allow them to invest in their properties and comply with regulations. The aboMastandi scheme has seen 40 loans (from 2 000 applications) approved so far. On the occasion of the State of the Province Address in February 2023 the provincial government released 482 serviced
GAUTENG BUSINESS 2023/24
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stands. The South African Housing Infrastructure Fund (SAHIF) has been active in the market of preparing land for development. Noting that some municipalities had been returning their housing b u dget s u nsp ent , S AHIF focussed on the first stages of development that are often ignored: zoning, approvals and basic infrastructure. SAHIF does that work and then sells it on to developers. It is estimated that early investments into 1 476ha of land will yield approximately 73 800 housing units. SAHIF’s goal is to speed up the delivery of affordable housing. The R300-million SA SMME Crisis Partnership Fund was launched in the Gauteng township of Tembisa in 2022. A collaboration between the Provincial Government of Gauteng, the Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) and the SA SME Fund intends to make financing available up to R1.5-million to SMMEs and to home owners wanting to upgrade their backyard rental accommodation. Six intermediaries have been identified to find and fund entrepreneurs and rental properties that need working capital or asset finance. Indlu PHOTO: Redefine Properties
