The latest FNB Estate Agent Survey found that after a much improved 2012 compared to 2011, the final quarter of last year showed a weakening in demand for property, possibly as a result of a weakening economy. A survey of estate agents is a good...
Five tricks to reduce your home loan
Homeowners can reduce the term of their home loan and the total that they pay in with careful budgeting and clever tricks. A house is usually the biggest asset that you will buy in your lifetime, but it's made affordable by the 20-year term of...
Would you buy a house with your friend or sister?
Higher house prices and stricter lending criteria by the banks have pushed homeownership out of reach of many ordinary South Africans on a single income. But if you really wanted to own a house would you be prepared to share the responsibility with...
Starting a property portfolio
Isaac shows how with discipline and a goal it is possible to build up a portfolio of properties on a limited salary that will one day pay you an income. It is important however to make sure that you do not over extend yourself and risk losing your...
Offshore asset allocation
“I want to invest offshore and I'm considering Allan Gray's Orbis Funds. Should I go for full equity, a medium equity or for 0% equity exposure?” writes Vaneshen Maya replies: In terms of offshore, the investment guru’s all believe that equities is...
Build up a property portfolio or diversify into other assets?
“My primary residence is fully paid off and I recently purchased a second property which I would like to pay off in the next 5 years. I have an extra R100 000 in a money market account, should I put that into the rental property plus an extra R2000...
Time to fix your mortgage
Six months ago Barclays Wealth predicted that South African interest rates would increase by 200 basis points by the end of 2012. At that time banks were charging around 115 basis points above their existing rate for clients to fix their mortgage...
Buy a car or pay off the bond?
“I am 29 years old and I have managed to save R100 000 with which I was planning to buy a new car (cash). However I realised that the car I am using is still in a good condition and is paid up and I can still use it for 2 more years. I have a home...
House prices fall marginally
Residential property prices showed a moderate decline during September, according to the latest results released by bond originator ooba. The September oobarometer price index revealed that the average house price decreased by 2% year-on-year to...
Kicking off a financial plan with a lump sum
“I am ready to formulate a financial plan and want an idea of where I should be investing my money for a real return. Once I have my lump sum should I buy a property, purchase shares in a start-up company that looks very promising or invest in...
Previous Articles
Reducing tenant risk for buy-to-let property investors
There is a perception that the South African legal system gives tenants more rights than property owners. People assume a tenant can default on rent for months, and there is nothing the property owner can do about it – you certainly can’t evict him. But this...
Reducing tenant risk for buy-to-let property investors
There is a perception that the South African legal system gives tenants more rights than property owners. People assume a tenant can default on rent for months, and there is nothing the property owner can do about it – you certainly can’t evict him. But this...
Reducing tenant risk for buy-to-let property investors
There is a perception that the South African legal system gives tenants more rights than property owners. People assume a tenant can default on rent for months, and there is nothing the property owner can do about it – you certainly can’t evict him. But this...
Reducing tenant risk for buy-to-let property investors
There is a perception that the South African legal system gives tenants more rights than property owners. People assume a tenant can default on rent for months, and there is nothing the property owner can do about it – you certainly can’t evict him. But this...
Don’t write-off residential property
The Weekend Argus Personal Finance page carried an article on whether it is better to buy or rent property. This was prompted by research by Henno Vermaak, an analyst at PSG Asset Management, which suggests that you may be better off renting and then investing the...
The legalities of renting a home
Whether you're a tenant or a landlord, it's wise to keep in mind the legalities of residential letting in South Africa. Landlords need to follow correct procedures in terms of recovering rental. A landlord is obliged to send a letter of demand notifying the tenant of...
Mixed fortunes for Western Cape property
The very first question which the sample of agents, surveyed for the 2nd quarter FNB Estate Agent Survey for the City of Cape Town, is asked is how they perceive residential demand activity levels. This is a subjective rating, on a scale of 1 to 10, and our City of...
Is your divorce a corporate risk?
There's only one thing more fascinating than a celebrity marriage, and that's a celebrity divorce. Particularly when it's messy, vituperative and, yes, expensive. But it's when we think of divorce as a corporate risk that it takes on another whole dimension and...
Should you be paying provisional tax?
If you've checked the provisional tax status of your eFiling profile, you may have noticed that all taxpayers are now loaded as provisional taxpayers. Why is this? Technically, any person deriving income that's not remuneration is eligible for provisional tax, so this...
Should you fix your mortgage?
In some cases, the banks will only offer customers a fixed interest rate, in other words no matter what happens to the prime lending rate, your home loan repayments remain the same. This is usually for customers who have had a problem with their credit history in the...