Cape Town’s existing neighbourhoods are in for a transformation.
The City of Cape Town’s land release programme is channeling over 14 000 affordable housing units worth R26 billion in private sector capital into communities that already exist, while opening the door to dignified, well-located homes for more Capetonians. It is as much a housing project as it is a socio-economic investment programme, according to the City.
In his address to the Affordable Housing Investment Connect conference in Cape Town yesterday, Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis said the City has released more land for affordable housing in the current term than than in the previous decade under its Priority Programme to accelerate land release.
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The City is aiming to forge strong public-private partnerships for more affordable housing.
The City brought together private sector developers, financiers, government, and international finance bodies for this groundbreaking conference.
Land parcels with a yield of over 14 000 affordable units are currently in the active land release pipeline or project packaging stage. A further 7 000-unit yield is estimated across land parcels already awarded to developers, while over 6 000 completed social housing units are already in operation in Cape Town.
Our unique land release for affordable housing programme is essentially a neighbourhood socio-economic investment programme. This programme unlocks economic growth, and improved infrastructure, services, and amenities in existing neighbourhoods.
Carl Pophaim, Mayco member for human settlements said the City had released land valued at R1.7 billion in just the past two years.
“We’ve released land with an estimated yield of 13 766 opportunities over the past two years. Over this period, the City also enabled more than R960 million in discounted release, bulk infrastructure investment, and incentives to enhance the viability of projects,” he said. “If this is what we’ve been able to do in just over two years, imagine what we will achieve as our programme matures.”
“Our unique land release for affordable housing programme is essentially a neighbourhood socio-economic investment programme. This programme unlocks economic growth, and improved infrastructure, services, and amenities in existing neighbourhoods, while also enabling greater access to dignified, well-located accommodation for more Capetonians,” said Councillor Pophaim.
Semigration to the City
The City is also calling for national grant-funding to be increased dramatically, and for it to be directly allocated to the metro, rather than via the red tape-laden Social Housing Regulatory Authority (SHRA).
According to the City, Cape Town’s housing market has seen significant shifts in recent years, with Covid-19 enabling greater mobility and driving high semigration to the city. Two broad forces are behind the demand, people seeking employment opportunities, drawn by the city’s higher employment rate, and growing confidence in good governance prompting investment in Cape Town properties as a financial asset.
Looking ahead, the pressures are set to intensify. Cape Town’s population is expected to grow to 8.4 million people over 24 years, with 70% of housing demand, both ownership and rental falling in the affordable bracket. Between now and 2050, more than one million housing units will be required to meet the demand.
The market has also seen a noticeable shift from freehold to sectional title developments, which now make up more than 50% of total property sales. According to the City, affordable housing brackets for ownership properties are valued at up to R1.5 million, while the rental space targets households earning between R3 500 and R34 800 per month.
