Shops, offices and factories are set to pop up in these Cape Town semigration hotspots

Cape Towns’ commercial property sector has remained on its upward trajectory over the past year, with more properties being sold and leased, says Brent Townes, commercial property chief operating officer for Lew Geffen Sotheby’s.

The company has seen a sharp rise in turnover results for six months ending August 2022 compared to the same period last year.

Despite interest rate hikes, an unrelenting energy crisis and stagnating economy, Cape Town’s commercial sector has remained on its upward trajectory over the past year, with a hike in units sold and leases signed, said Townes.

Semigration, better governance and lifestyle factors have placed the Western Cape on a different trajectory than the rest of the country, further bolstering the commercial sector, which continues to grow despite the recent interest rate hikes, current energy crisis and floundering economy, said Lew Geffen Sotheby’s.

“In terms of commercial property sales, we’ve seen a 266% increase in units sold, and in the rental arena a 75% rise in leases signed, and this growing market activity is showing no signs of abating.”

He said that the following precedents are seeing the most movement:

• Century City
• Westlake
• Tygervalley
• Claremont
• Newlands
• City CBD

The CBD has seen an influx of semigrants as the city has avoided the common urban degradation that has impacted many other major metros – where people try to relocate away from the city centre.

Townes said it is likely that there will be ongoing investment and development in the area.

Demand for new or high-quality office space in primary locations, including Claremont and Newlands, are growing largely due to the popularity of residential property in the area – fueled by semigration.

During the past year, sales in the top 12 commercial areas, which represent 80% of the city’s commercial property value, are split into the following:

• 56% – office or business premises
• 38% – industrial
• 4.7% – retail

Townes said that the growing demand for retail properties is very evident, with around 10% of their inquiries for retail or mixed-use spaces.

John Loos, a strategist for FNB’s Property Sector, said that this is indicative of a larger economic shift away from Gauteng and towards the Western Cape and, to a lesser degree, to KwaZulu-Natal.

“It would appear that the Western Cape currently marches to a very different economic beat to the rest of the country, with the bulk of the country’s economy experiencing more significant economic and property market pressures.”

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