Neighbourhood 4 FEBRUARY 2018
PROPERTY & LIFESTYLE
Brooklyn An established suburb with a vibrant mix of amenities, beautiful homes and entertainment areas, page 2
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SUBURB FOCUS: BROOKLYN
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BUSINESS Q&A
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PROPERTY NEWS
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PROPERTY NEWS
4 FEBRUARY 2018
Neighbourhood
Suburb focus
Brooklyn Here’s what’s happening in property in the area WORDS: BETSIE LOOCK-VAN DER MERWE IMAGES: RENE WALKER & GOOGLE MAPS
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rooklyn in Pretoria’s Old East is traditionally an affluent suburb offering a high-quality lifestyle in a beautiful secluded neighbourhood within comfortable proximity to big city conveniences.
This Jacaranda tree-lined suburb also offers quick access to the city’s main roads, such as Lynnwood Road, Atterbury Road, Justice Mahomed Street (previously Charles Street) and the N1 highway. In addition to every basic business facility, the area also boasts the best of the city’s *Map not to scale
educational, medical, shopping and leisure amenities.
the percentage of people under 35 buying property in the area.
Property
Currently, trends indicate an upsurge in contemporary developments like ultra-luxurious lock-up-and-go apartments and modern townhouse complexes offering the latest in style, design and comfort.
Established in the early 20th century, Brooklyn mostly comprises sizeable stands with large and elegant family homes boasting well-manicured gardens under shady trees. These multibedroom properties are soughtafter and pricey, with many of them used as home offices or occupied by established families. Easily accessible main street properties are popular for professional business use. Not surprising, most (stable) homeowners and recent buyers in Brooklyn fall in the 50–64 age group, although an increase in buyers in the 36–49 age group has been noticed. There’s also a small increase in
Being located within walking distance of the University of Pretoria, some of the large properties and homes have been turned into student accommodation.
Schooling
Parents living in Brooklyn can choose from an extensive selection of private and public schools located in this well-established neighbourhood and its immediate surrounds. Brooklyn Primary School and Laerskool Pretoria Oos are top public primary schools in the suburb, while Laerskool Anton van Wouw and Waterkloof Primary School are a few minutes’ drive away. Brooklyn is home to the well-known Waterkloof House Preparatory School. This private preparatory school for boys from Grade 0 to 7 is one of a few offering boarding facilities from Grade 3. Other nearby independent schools include Courtney House International School and Crawford College Pretoria. Most of the above-mentioned schools offer pre-school facilities. Brooklyn is also the proud home of the well-known Pretoria Boys High School. Many high school pupils living in Brooklyn attend the renowned Menlo Park High School in the neighbouring suburb, while Brooklyn is also in close proximity of the prestigious TuksSport High School.
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4 FEBRUARY 2018
Neighbourhood
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PROPERTY NEWS
What I love most about Brooklyn is the atmosphere – that feeling of an established and serene area. Then there’s the abundance of fully grown beautiful Jacaranda trees. Nowhere else have I experienced that specific feeling. CAROL VAN ROOYEN, RESIDENT
SHOP: • • • • •
The suburb is a popular residential area for students from the University of Pretoria (Tukkies), which is situated about 2km from Brooklyn.
Brooklyn Design Square Brooklyn Mall Cherry Lane Shopping Centre The Club Waterkloof Corner
Explore
EAT: • The Blue Crane Restaurant and Bar: for global fare and cocktails • Cynthia’s Indigo Moon: a classic favourite • Moo Moo: for mouth-watering steaks • Mythos Restaurant: for Greek meals • Padbok Thai Restaurant: for delicious Thai cuisine
SEE: • The Chris Tugwell Art Gallery: for paintings, ceramics and sculptures from South African artists. • Van Wouw House: dating from 1938, this house was built for the sculptor, Anton van Wouw. It’s currently used as the Anton van Wouw Museum.
For sale
For rent
Median asking price:
Median asking price:
R3,69m
For a typical property in this area
R2,39m
R1,95m
R3,6m
In a complex
For an apartment
For a house
You’ll pay
R36,223
An art and antiques fair is held in the mall every first Saturday of the month, while residents can also opt to browse around the nearby Magnolia Dell Craft Market or the Hazel Food Market a few blocks away. Visitors can enjoy the lovely scenery, spot several species of small game and birds and enjoy lots of fresh air at the Austin Roberts Bird Sanctuary just down the road from the mall. The renowned Pretoria Country Club is located about 3,5km from the Brooklyn hub. You can play a round of golf or get pampered at one of the many health spas in the area.
R13,000
Monthly bond repayments
For a typical property (four-bedroom house)
Brooklyn Mall and Brooklyn Square located in the heart of the suburb make for the perfect indoor entertainment venues. With Ster-Kinekor and Cinema Nouveau movie theatres in the mall, there will be a flick on the circuit to suit every member of the family. In addition to more than 220 speciality, fashion and lifestyle shops, there are a number of coffee shops and restaurants in the mall, while Brooklyn Square is home to a host of piazza-style eateries meeting a variety of tastes and budgets.
For a typical property (two-bedroom apartment)
R20,000
R11,500
R18,750
In a complex
For an apartment
For a house
per month
Property Type:
71% house
17%
apartment
12% complex
Property Type: Based on
40% house
R3,69m
42%
median asking price
over a period of 20 years at 10,25% prime
apartment
18% complex
4 FEBRUARY 2018
Neighbourhood
My business neighbourhood Padstal in the Southdowns Shopping Centre in Irene gives customers a farmstall experience every day of the week WORDS: ZENA LE ROUX
IMAGE: SUPPLIED
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adstal specialises in dried fruit, nuts, various home-baked rusks, biscuits and a wide range of bottled condiments, jams and more. It also has an extensive range of ceramics and pottery, and everything is proudly South African. Owner Willem Nel tells us more. Q: How did your business start? A: In 2012, my business on the mine was looted and burned down. It was the time of the Marikana unrest and we lost the lot and had to start from scratch. At the time, our three sons were at university and we all moved into a simplex in Pretoria. At first, we sold dried fruit and nuts at markets. For six weeks we had a pop-up shop in the lanes of Centurion Mall. We had to move to another location every week before we finally opened our store in Southdowns Shopping Centre. My wife, Zonda, runs the shop and I’ve been selling packets of our fruit and nut products to hospitals, butcheries, biltong shops and florists, among others. I’ve created a
PROPERTY NEWS
company – Peaches and Nuts – with a BEE partner, Martha Kokota. I did that not because of legislation but because I believe I also have to do my small bit in building the country. By empowering Martha and, as we grow, other less privileged people, I can make a small difference. Q: Why did you choose this area to set up shop? A: Irene has quite a few estates and is a higher-income area. Q: How did you find your premises? A: We looked around for premises, and the only place which was close to our home and had vacant space was Southdowns Shopping Centre. The premises in Centurion Mall were too small and, because it’s a regional mall, had a high rental. Q: Why are the premises ideally suited to your business? A: We’re close to the N1 highway and surrounded by numerous estates, which makes it an ideal setting. The premises and circumstances under which we run our business are perfectly suited for the new South Africa. Q: Who are your neighbours? A: We have a PostNet on the one side and Lovemore Music Centre on the other. Luckily, Woolworths is also in the centre as well as Pick n Pay, and we saw the gap to compete with them with personal service, unique products and competitive pricing. Q: What are the shop rental/sales prices like in this area? A: The shop rental in the Southdowns
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Shopping Centre is definitely higher than other centres in the area. Q: How many people visit your business each day? A: Most of our customers are not dependent on a month-end salary, so our turnover and foot traffic differ on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. Q: Do you have any expansion plans? A: Yes. We’ve just launched our online store – edenmall.co.za. We sell flowers, jewellery, dried fruits, nuts, biltong and gift hampers at competitive prices. We make use of a countrywide courier service and believe there’s a niche in the market just for us – simplicity and quality being our objective. Q: Do you operate online as well? A: Yes, we have an online store (edenmall.co.za) and we’re on Facebook (facebook.com/Padstal). Q: What’s your most popular item? A: In the shop, it’s our various gifts and, of course, our fruit and nuts. On edenmallonline.co.za, it’s our flowers, biltong, hampers, dried fruit, nuts and sweets.
SEE FOR YOURSELF: Padstal 071 136 6945 edenmall.co.za
18823
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4 FEBRUARY 2018
Neighbourhood
PROPERTY NEWS
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EightOnN by Blok
Moving in The price has been agreed upon, seller and buyer are happy. But what date of occupation do you include in the sale agreement? WORDS: ANNE SCHAUFFER
IMAGE: ISTOCK
T
he date chosen to occupy a new home is usually affected by a number of factors, such as the buyer’s timeline, where they’re going and whether the property is ready for them to move in or not. The seller needs to consider when they have to be out of the property and when the buyer wants to move in. There’s often a complex chain of events to consider. The problem is that it’s impossible to know the specific date when ownership will transfer from seller to buyer. There are too many people and processes involved in the sale and transfer of the property from one owner to another. Even with the best will in the world, things can go wrong.
Occupation on transfer
“Current thinking is that the best solution is to opt for ‘occupation on transfer of the property’,” says Maria Davey, attorney, Meumann White Attorneys. “This way, when the new owner takes vacant occupation (they) also (get) possession, meaning that all risk and benefit in the property is now vested in the purchaser who has paid the full purchase price and is the registered legal owner.” Another plus for the “occupation on transfer” approach is that no buyer will be able to – or want to – make
any alterations or spend any money on a property they don’t yet own. However, the disadvantage of “occupation on transfer” is the uncertainty. Moving is stressful enough, and not knowing when you can move into your new home isn’t ideal. You’ll be given an estimate, but that’s as good as it gets.
Negotiate an occupation date
However, if you need certainty and don’t wish to leave the property vacant for any period of time, then you could negotiate an occupation date with the seller, with the chance that this date may end up being prior to or after registration of transfer. If it ends up being prior to or post transfer, you’d settle on a specified occupational rental paid from buyer to seller, or vice versa. This provides certainty, but if it’s prior to transfer, it also leaves the seller open to a situation where the buyer occupies a property they don’t yet own. They may find problems with the property which they believe the seller must resolve, even though these may have existed at the time of sale. The seller could then be in a situation where they are “forced” to fix any issues simply to avoid unnecessary delays in the transfer. On the flipside, if the buyer has moved in and needed or wanted to make
alterations to the property, they are often tempted to do so prior to transfer. If, for whatever reason, the transfer doesn’t go through, the buyer will then have spent money on somebody else’s property and could well have a problem recouping that money from the seller. If something happens to the buyer before transfer and they are unable to proceed to take transfer, the seller could be handed back an altered property.
Occupation after transfer
Maria says a third approach often suits both parties. “Set an occupation date after registration of transfer. Say occupation will be given to the purchaser 14 days after the date of transfer. This can offer the best of both worlds,” she says. But what motivates a seller to promptly move out of the property once they’ve received their purchase price? “At the end of the day, the seller has sold a major asset which the purchaser should be entitled to take occupation and possession of when (they) have paid the purchase price. When the purchaser actually moves in is the purchaser’s choice. On the other hand, the seller has sold and will know more or less when the transfer will come into effect. The seller should, therefore, ensure that (they have) vacated the property timeously so that (they) can hand the property to the purchaser on transfer,” says Maria.
E
ightOnN – the latest development from urban property developer, Blok – is a five-storey building, situated on Norfolk Road in Sea Point, and will house 18 spacious, pet-friendly and water- and energy-efficient apartments.
secure parking, high-speed internet and water-intelligent fittings.
The development will comprise one-, two- and three-bedroom homes, some of which will be terrace apartments. Also included are three- and fourbedroom penthouses. According to Jacques van Embden, MD, Blok, “EightOnN focuses on bringing two- and three-bedroom homes to the market, ensuring more diverse individuals and families can access these urban opportunities.”
“Nature itself is telling us to be more efficient, and it’s with this in mind that we’ve included into the design of the building a rainwater harvesting system and borehole connection and filtration system which will connect into water tanks kept within the basement of the building. This is added to the already efficient glazing, water heating and smart energy products and appliances we always include as fundamentals of a good building and home, ensuring we’re working harder to create more sustainable buildings and living habits,” says Van Embden.
EightOnN will be equipped with access control, CCTV, on-site security,
Occupation is scheduled for summer 2019/ 2020.
Every person who is selling their home wants it sold for the best possible price, within the shortest timeframe. To achieve this, the home needs to be appealing to the highest possible number of potential buyers. Home staging is used by estate agents as one of their marketing tools to highlight a home’s best features. It’s preparing the home for sale by using techniques that focus on improving the property’s appeal and transforming it into an attractive and welcoming space. ADRIAN GOSLETT, REGIONAL DIRECTOR AND CEO, RE/MAX OF SOUTHERN AFRICA
East London premium estate attracts buyers
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hase 1 of Olivewood, the first premium lifestyle estate in the East London area, is on the market. Situated 40km from the city centre and the airport, Olivewood Private Estate and Golf Club spans more than 1,000ha in the scenic Chintsa Valley. The estate will incorporate 55 erven, with well-positioned hilltop homes. “There are three residential offerings in Phase 1 – sectional title terrace apartments and simplexes and fulltitle erven,” says Sean Coetzee, area principal, Pam Golding Properties East London. “Already under construction, the two-bedroom terrace apartments are 250m2 in size and priced from R4m, depending on
finishes. The three- and four-bedroom units are 325m2 and priced from R5m.” There are also 96 freehold erven, 22 of which are already sold, priced from R500,000 upwards. Coetzee says they cater to buyers who want to design their own homes, which will be built by Olivewood’s construction team. Set in the unspoilt Chintsa countryside, Olivewood’s design concepts include solar energy, rainwater harvesting and water-retention capabilities. The 18hole golf course is irrigated with water from the estate’s dams and boreholes. As the development gains momentum, grey water from properties will be used to irrigate the grounds.
Positive outlook for local housing market
“I
t was a stable start to the new year with the Reserve Bank today (18 January) announcing no change in the repo rate at the conclusion of its Monetary Policy Committee meeting, as forecast by various market commentators,” said Dr Andrew Golding, CEO, Pam Golding Property Group. Golding said while the political transition currently under way was in itself unlikely to create an environment for interest rate cuts, it was helping to ease pressure on the bank to hike rates. “Given the current scenario with the National Budget pending in February and potential further risk to our country’s credit rating, this outcome was not surprising, although it’s
hoped that lower inflation and a less volatile political environment will facilitate a move towards a rate cut in the near future.” Positively, with the Reserve Bank’s index of leading indicators in positive territory, FNB economist John Loos was recently quoted pointing out that this was the first time in a while that the economy would be supporting the housing market. “With the economy expected to strengthen somewhat and interest rate hikes most likely delayed, the outlook for the local housing market is more upbeat this year. Just how much better, will become increasingly apparent in the weeks and months ahead,” said Golding.