Category Archives: Selling real estate

Information, articles and news that is relevant to selling real estate in South Africa.

Changes in electrical compliance regulations.

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In South Africa it used to be that when a property changed hands from seller to buyer the seller had to have the property inspected by a qualified electrician and provide the buyer with an electrical compliance certificate. As of the 1 May however the process will change and be slightly easier for the seller.

The new regulations will stipulate that any certificate issued within the last two years is still valid provided no other work has been done on the property’s electrical system since the certificate was issued. Furthermore if a buyer wishes to have a current compliance inspection done before the sale goes through he can no longer demand that the seller pay for it, he will have to pay for it himself.

Another important change is that the electrician performing the inspection only has to state that the system is completely safe whereas in the past they had to state that the system was in full working order. The previous guarantee drew alot of complaints from electricians as minor problems, or problems that occurred after inspection would get them into hot water.

It does sound as though the new regulations will relieve some of the burden from the seller and force buyers to take a more active role in the standard of safety in their new property. Remember to get up to date legal advice when you are in the process of buying/selling a property.

Attractive outdoor entertainment.

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Buyers always want as much as they can get for their money. If you look around your house there may be many areas you can improve upon at very little cost to really get buyers attention and make it worth their while.

When it comes to the outdoors of your home there are many things you can do to brighten it up even if you have very little to work with. An entertainment area outdoors, no matter how small, will always be attractive to a buyer. Here are some ideas of how and what to improve.

  • Your stoep/patio. As they are outdoors they are exposed to all the elements and can become very worn and possibly very dirty. Check if there are any missing bricks or unattractive cracks in the cement and have them repaired. Just by doing this you freshen it up and make it look neat and tidy. If you have wooden decking that is perhaps in need of a refinishing you should also do this, explain to the buyers that you have just had it refinished and they won’t need to do it again for the next couple of years. Set the scene in a simple uncluttered way and show the buyers how the stoep can be used.
  • Check your Lapa. Lapa’s are really great for us sunny South Africans and if it has been well maintained then it can only be great selling point. Check the thatch for any damage and have it repaired before you start showing the property, if the first thing a buyers sees is the need for repair and maintenance it may well put them off.
  • Swimming pools or jacuzzi’s. This should go without saying, make sure your pool or jacuzzi is clean! Buyers will probably be put off by another reminder that there is something that they are going to need the time to maintain. It may also be a good idea to install some kind of safety mechanism on or around the pool. Buyers with children will be very happy about this as it will elleviate some of the concerns they have about the safety of their children.

Lastly ensure your outdoors area is clean, pick up the doggy doo, move the municipal bin somewhere out of sight and if necessary cut the grass. All these very basic things are often overlooked by sellers but not by buyers. Always look at your home as though you were buyer.

Home staging as a marketing technique.

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A relatively new method of marketing your property for sale is starting to become more and more well known in South Africa. It is known as ‘home staging‘. The US and UK already employ this technique and it may be something for you to consider if you are struggling to sell your property and you don’t know why.

The basic principal behind the service is that a professional home stager will come to your home and use items and furniture that you already have to increase the impact of the positive aspects of your home and minimise the negative points. In some cases, if the homeowner can afford it, some new accessories may be purchased.

Certain sellers feel it is unnecessary to spruce up the house a bit when a potential buyer is on the way, but the majority of buyers will certainly notice the difference. It is always wonderful if you can afford the services of a professional to do the job for you but if you feel it is an unnecessary expense why not try and do it yourself. Maybe all your bedroom needs to finish it off is a night-frill and a couple of throw pillows. Or maybe you just need to shift the couches so that the bar you don’t really use is actually accessible.

Try and take an objective look at your property and if you can’t come up with any improvement ideas perhaps it’s time to get a quote from the professionals. There will be companies advertising themselves on the Internet that offer this service. If you decide to follow this route try and get the opinion of other people who have used their service previously and whether or not it actually helped.

What do you think? Is home staging necessary?

Update your decor for a quicker sale.

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Nobody wants to imagine themselves living in a very dated home. Homes that still have posters hanging in them dating from 1987 that you only ever still see on the walls of less reputable hair salons.

It is important to update your home from time to time as it can affect a buyers view of the property. It is also important to note however that one should never get carried away with a trend and end up painting walls poison yellow just because it was fashionable. Some decor trends are hard to get rid of once you tire of them.

That said it is your home so for the time you live there make it your own, just make sure any decor changes are reversible so that others can imagine themselves making your old home their new home.

Here are a couple of decor ideas that should should stand the test of time quite well.

Colour is the best weapon in your arsenal, if you choose your colour palette right you will open up a world of possibilities for yourself  that take little effort to achieve. As you may imagine something neutral is usually your best bet. But neutral doesn’t have to mean bland beige, in 2009 there are a range of great colours available to you.

There is a vast array of neutral tones out there ranging from a slight rose tone all the way through to very pale green. The choice is yours and once you choose your base colour you can add fashionable highlights in golden greens, citrons, blue-greens,  blue-purple, oranges, wine, berry, tomato reds and earthy browns.

The trend of the season seems to be leaning toward an earthy feel that will include bronze trims and accessories. If you are on the more adventurous side you could choose to paint burnt orange accent wall and build your decor pieces around a Moroccan theme. Inspiration can be drawn from mosaic patterns, cultural design and eclectic combinations.

The biggest cultural influence of the season seems to be the Middle East, China and India. This is expressed most obviously in colour combinations traditional to these areas.

Imagine yourself relaxing in your beautiful Chinese inspired living room that all started with painting your wall a soothing pale green. All you have to remember is to keep your base colour the most neutral thing in the room and then to have fun with accessories.

Whatever your personal taste may be remember that everyone has a different opinion of what good taste is. Enjoy your home and your personal style while you are living there but when selling your home make it as easy as possible for buyers to imagine their own furniture inside.

Even more homeowners under severe stress.

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According to Auction Alliance the number of bondholders under severe stress has risen to 35 000 in the fourth quarter of 2008, this is a sharp increase from the 8000 reported in the second quarter.

They went on to say that an estimated 80% of these bondholders would have to rid themselves of their homes either voluntarily or not. The bad figures are continuing to grow, despite some rather large rate cuts, due to other factors such as joblosses and a generally negative economic climate.

The US has given itself an estimated 2 years to recover from the terrible economic situation it is currently in but many economists are saying this is wishful thinking and the damage to the country’s economy will run far deeper than expected. The problems in the US started with a mortgage crisis and then bled through to many other sectors causing widespread financial damage to individuals and the country as a whole.

In South Africa there has been an increase in distressed sales and properties in possession that are auctioned off by creditors to recoup some of their loses. Although some lending institutions are less inclined to repossess properties due to the fact that there are increasingly fewer buyers in the market.

This is leading them to consider alternatives such as negotiating a lower monthly repayment that will enable the bondholder to keep paying for the property. This is surely preferable to them having thousands of repossessed properties on their books that they are unable to sell to cover the outstanding amount owed them.

One thing that may help is a very major rate cut in the near future that will actually free up cash in consumers’ pockets. Smaller rate cuts may be safer but they don’t immediately alleviate enough financial pressure from everyday people in any demonstrable way.

What do you think? Would a major rate cut be a good thing or would it hurt us in the long run?

Make a feature out of a fireplace.

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A great way to add ambiance to any room is to install a fireplace. And these days we aren’t just limited to those old fashioned rather dated white mouldings, there are many great contemporary styles and designs to choose from.

But before you do anything you need to decide which type of fireplace would be most practical for your home. Does your home already have a chimney? If not this may seriously limit your options unless you are willing to install a chimney.

Then you need to consider the size of the room you had in mind, because fireplaces are intended to generate heat having a gargantuan medieval open fireplace in a small room would probably melt the plaster off the walls. So think practically about whether you will be able to enjoy the fireplace in comfort without feeling to hot or cold.

So what options are there? Many more than you would think, you can choose between open or closed, free-standing or traditional and gas, electric or wood burning. Again consider which is going to be more practical when it comes to supplying fuel for it and equally importantly cleaning it.

Consult with a professional to find out exactly which type would suit your needs best but here is some more basic info.

Closed system fireplaces often give a more contemporary feel and are more energy efficient as they allow far less heat to escape through the chimney but are more expensive to install. Open fireplaces bring a traditional romantic atmosphere to a room but are less energy efficient and can be rather messy.

With the electricity crisis still a reality gas fireplaces have become very popular with South Africans. They allow you to heat your home independently from Eskom and are very easy to maintain. They also generate no mess as they use gas to generate heat. Their downside seems to be that they are not as energy efficient as their wood burning counterparts, the gas used to fuel them is also more expensive.

You should also familiarize yourself with fire safety and the proper maintenance of your fireplace and its chimney ventilation system. You should have your fireplace annually inspected by a professional and keep a fire extinguisher near it that everyone in the family knows how to use.

A well installed, tasteful fireplace will please many people and can only add value to your home if you wish to sell on in the future, as long as it is well maintained.

If you do decide to install a fireplace make sure you use a reputable company with a proven safety record, remember you are bringing combustible items into your your home and you should never take short cuts!

How will crime affect the re-sale of your property?

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South Africa has a well known problem with violent crime and home invasion robberies. We are not the world leader in violent crime but are very close to being it. Logically homeowners want to feel as safe and secure as possible in their homes and most will take any action necessary to protect themselves.

If you are trying to sell your home and it is located within a high crime area you will find it far harder to sell. Location is the one thing about a property that cannot be changed and affects everything.

Buyers may be more willing to consider your property if you have adequate security measures in place at the time of sale. Many, many people will not even consider spending a single night in an unprotected home, particularly in the areas that are rife with crime such as Gauteng.

Visible security measures will make the buyer feel more secure and probably act as a deterrent for criminal activity. Measures such as:

  • burglar bars
  • security gates
  • electric fencing
  • security cameras
  • alarm systems

If you do not have these in place already you should consider installing them before putting your home on the market as many buyers these days will calculate the cost of these security measures and demand that the seller reduce his price by that much. If you do it yourself it will not pose a problem for you in the future and will give you more negotiating power.

There is also the effect of immigration, due to crime, taking buyers out of South Africa. The higher income areas are probably most affected as they can afford to emigrate to other more appealing countries if they wish to do so. This will eventually make it much harder to sell the higher end properties at their market value as the demand for them will have decreased.

If you intend on selling your property make sure it looks like a safe and secure purchase as this will affect it’s re-sale potential very much. If you are selling your home because your security measures have been ineffective in preventing crime on your property it would be best to consult with a professional that can advise you on the best way to protect your home and family. This will then also help you sell your home in the future.

Date set for national elections.

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South Africans will go to the polls on 22 April. The unofficial announcement was made on Tuesday by President Kgalema Motlanthe.

This is the day many citizens are waiting in anticipation for as it will illuminate whether or not the ANC has any real competition.

It will be the fourth democratic elections since 1994 and will highlight the progress made since the inception of our democracy.This years election season has been a tumultuous ride since former president Thabo Mbeki was called on to step down following allegations of interference in Jacob Zuma’s fraud and corruption trial.

We then saw current President Kgalema Motlanthe take office and the breakaway party COPE was formed, mostly comprising of former ANC members.

It will be an interesting result and we may get a better idea of what is in store for our new democracy by looking at the division of votes between the ruling ANC and its opposition.

The ANC is still expected to win the day but perhaps by a smaller margin than its previous landslide victories. ANC president Jacob Zuma still has to weather the storm of his current legal entanglement and all are wondering what the outcome will be as it will certainly affect the country and the world’s perception of South Africa.

Hopefully the rest of the election run-up is peaceful and free of violence. The election date still needs to be officially proclaimed, but it is not expected to change.

Impress buyers with your garden.

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We all want to attract buyers in as many ways as possible, whether this means having the carpets shampooed, the walls re-painted or just a good tidy-up it will improve your property’s chances of selling.

One area some sellers overlook is the garden. This is a vital selling point and should be treated as such.You may have a small pokey patch of lawn at the back that you can only fit a few chairs and a water feature in, but at least you have it.Many buyers look for low maintenance gardens that just offer them an outside space to relax in. If you tidy the area up and perhaps display it to advertise its low maintenance status you will probably find someone who thinks it is ideal.

Also a very large garden that has not been well maintained can cause you just as many problems when you are trying to sell the property.The potential buyers will merely see a wilderness that they are going to have to tame. Take a good long look at your garden and try and be objective. Ask yourself if the enormous compost heap covered in morning glories that stretches across the entire back garden wall really emphasises your gardens strong points.

It will cost you some money but if you yourself are not up to the task call in a professional gardening service. Even if all you want them to do is tidy up that compost heap they will at least know the difference between a weed and something that will grow into a beautiful plant that will add value to the garden.

Imagine yourself as a buyer walking out the back door of a house into a small garden that has nothing but a broken washing machine and a dirty braai in it. You would certainly not put that garden onto that houses list of plus points. Don’t use your garden as a storage area for unsightly broken things that you will never get around to fixing anyway.

Another thing sellers overlook in relation to gardens is the amount of animal droppings that are left in full view of anyone entering the garden. The person viewing the property may not be an animal lover and big piles of doggy doo lying around may just put him off for good.

Try and display the garden you have to show off its best assets, otherwise just make sure it is neat and clean and free of anything that may lead people to believe you are running a scrap yard.