Sales of luxury trophy homes have been predominantly in the high-end suburbs of the Atlantic Seaboard and Southern Suburbs.
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The demand for luxury homes, particularly in the Western Cape, is on the rise with foreign investors and returning expatriates see value in investing in a stable property market offering a considerable return on investment, says Bradd Bendell, BetterBond’s national head of sales.
Meanwhile Seeff Property Group concurs, saying that luxury trophy homes in Cape Town priced over R20 million have seen sales surge to a record high for the first quarter of this year. These sales have been predominantly in the high-end suburbs of the Atlantic Seaboard and Southern Suburbs, says Seeff.
And added to that the price ticket on homes are on the rise with Clifton winning the honours for being the most expensive property in the region,
Propstats data shows a record 53 high value sales worth over R1.6 billion in the first three months of this year. Half of this value comes from just 25 sales in the Atlantic Seaboard suburbs, the latest being a luxury 383sqm apartment in The Aurum in Bantry Bay, which sold for R65 million by Seeff to a local buyer, according to Ross Levin, a licensee for Seeff Atlantic Seaboard.
Levin says wealthy buyers are currently seeing Cape Town property as a good store of wealth.
Properties are selling much faster with sole mandate properties averaging just five weeks on the market. Even older properties which have been on the market for a while are now selling.
Adrian Mauerberger and Bryan Ginsberg who sold the R65 million apartment, say the majority of buyers are locals, but there is still a big semigration market. "The iconic location and lifestyle is drawing buyers from all over. We’re seeing an influx of locals, as well as buyers from Gauteng, KZN, the UK and Germany especially who are investing here right now, mostly cash buyers."
Further sales include three homes in Camps Bay sold for R45 million (local buyer), R21 million (German buyer), and R33.75 million (UK buyer, shared sale). Additionally, sales of R20 million and R23 million in Fresnaye (both local buyers), and at the Waterfront of R29.5 million (local buyer), R33 million (KZN buyer), and R29 million (German buyer).
As a result of the high value sales at least eight of Cape Town’s top 10 suburbs for wealthy buyers currently boast a luxury house price of over R20 million, the remaining two being over R15 million.
Luxury Suburbs ranked by Luxury Price for Q1:2025 versus 2020
Clifton – R42.00m vs R37m
Bishopscourt – R24.65m vs R15.84m
Camps Bay – R24.14m vs R13.18m
Llandudno – R23m vs R20.06m
Waterfront – R21.61m vs R11.2m
Bantry Bay – R21.58m vs R20.45m
Higgovale – R21.51m vs R22.51m (massive R85m sale)
Constantia – R21.07m vs R12.565m
Fresnaye – R17.4m vs R15.07m
Oranjezicht – R16.56m vs R9.97m
Source: Propstats/Seeff – Ave Price 2025 vs 2020
Francois Venter, lead agent for Seeff in the southern suburbs says here too, agents are seeing a mix of new and old listings selling with his team scooping 6 recent high value sales. These include a vacant plot in Bishopscourt sold for R20.25 million (local buyer), along with homes sold in Constantia for R42 million (Polish buyer), R24.7 million (German buyer), and three sales to local buyers at R36 million, R31 million and R20.5 million respectively.
“We’re seeing tremendous confidence in the property market right now,” says Venter. “Cape Town is also the only city in the country which frequently ranks in top global cities indices for visitors and property value growth.”
Meanwhile BetterBond reported a 15.23% increase in bond approvals for homes priced over R3 million year-on-year, now making up 10% of all bonds.
Bendall meanwhile said what is driving the spike ranged from from foreign investment and returning expats to lifestyle-driven relocations. Cape Town leads the pack, with prices climbing 5.1% in 2024 according to the Knight Frank Wealth Report, but demand is also rising in Gauteng estates and KZN coastal areas.
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