Homes in South Africa 'cost much less'

It is possible to get a home in a fashionable district in South Africa for a fraction of the cost of properties in London or New York, it has been suggested.

Chairman of Sotheby's International Realty SA Lew Geffen told Times Live that on average such homes in Cape Town or Johannesburg can be had for a third of the equivalent prices in Britain or the US.

He stated that "one could acquire an ultra-modern loft apartment in central Cape Town, or a three-bedroom apartment right on the beach front in Sea Point" for the cost of a one-bedroom apartment in London.

This figure would be around ZAR1.3 million (GBP108,000), he noted.

Similarly, a two-bedroom, two-bathroom townhouse in Johannesburg's Houghton district can be bought for the same cost as a one-bed studio flat in Manhattan.

Cape Town was recently tipped by chief executive of Durr Estates Julian Reynolds to perform well in the next year as the country's market recovers.

He wrote on Real Estate Web that the metropolitan area has seen the biggest price drops in the slump and thus may experience the largest bounce-back.

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