{"id":836255,"date":"2025-09-06T16:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-09-06T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=836255"},"modified":"2025-09-09T10:05:20","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T08:05:20","slug":"us-dollar-millionaires-are-flocking-to-this-small-south-african-town","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/property\/836255\/us-dollar-millionaires-are-flocking-to-this-small-south-african-town\/","title":{"rendered":"US-dollar millionaires are flocking to this small South African town"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

South Africa\u2019s Whale Coast has quietly become one of Africa\u2019s fastest-growing millionaire hotspots, with Hermanus emerging as a particularly attractive town for wealthy property buyers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is according to the latest Africa Wealth Report<\/a>, published annually by international wealth advisory firm Henley & Partners in collaboration with New World Wealth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report highlighted that Hermanus and its surrounding areas are drawing high-net-worth individuals faster than any other part of the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The report showed that private wealth across Africa continues to expand despite global headwinds. The continent is now home to 25 billionaires, 348 centi-millionaires, and 122,500 millionaires. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

South Africa remains the largest wealth market, with 41,100 millionaires, including 112 centi-millionaires and eight billionaires. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This accounts for 34% of Africa\u2019s millionaire population, roughly equal to the combined total of the next five wealthiest countries on the continent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among the fastest-growing wealth hubs, South Africa\u2019s Whale Coast, which lies between Cape Town and the Garden Route, has seen the biggest rise in millionaires and centi-millionaires, with an increase of 50%. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSouth Africa\u2019s Whale Coast includes the wealth hotspots of Hermanus, Rooi Els, and Betty\u2019s Bay, and is South Africa\u2019s fastest growing region for high-net-worth individuals,\u201d the report noted. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe Hermanus suburbs of Vo\u00eblklip, Kwaaiwater, Eastcliff, and Fernkloof Estate are especially affluent,\u201d it added. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Whale Coast now has around 1,700 millionaires and seven centi-millionaires, with Hermanus leading the growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Known globally as a whale-watching destination, Hermanus is a seaside town southeast of Cape Town that combines coastal charm with an increasingly sophisticated lifestyle offering. Its beaches, like Vo\u00eblklip and Grotto, overlooking Walker Bay, add to the appeal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paul Kruger, licensee for Seeff Hermanus, explained why the town has surged in popularity among the wealthy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHermanus has become a prime destination for second homes and development, largely due to its stunning coastal location, weather, lifestyle, and proximity to Cape Town,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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With the city only a two-hour drive away, wealthy buyers can enjoy seaside living while still having access to urban amenities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHigh-net-worth buyers and investors are increasingly drawn to the area. A recent New World Wealth report indicated a 25% increase in high-net-worth individuals migrating to the town, surpassing growth in other Western Cape regions,\u201d Kruger added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This influx of wealthy buyers has transformed the property market. Over the past few years, sales of homes priced above R5 million have more than doubled. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Exclusive areas such as Kwaaiwater and Vo\u00eblklip have recorded transactions of over R20 million, with rare properties recently fetching more than R40 million. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are now seeing estates that could top the R100 million mark,\u201d said Kruger. Lightstone data confirmed Hermanus boasts the highest volume and value of transactions among key smaller coastal towns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSales of houses priced over R5 million have more than doubled over the last five years, from 57 transactions in 2019 to 132,\u201d Kruger said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The town has also become a serious competitor in the ultra-luxury category, with 26 residential homes selling for more than R20 million over the past five years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A notable driver of this surge is semigration. Many affluent South Africans, particularly from Gauteng, are relocating or buying holiday homes in Hermanus. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kruger pointed to new private schools such as Curro and Generation Schools, a regional mall, and advanced healthcare facilities as examples of how the town is evolving to meet the needs of its growing high-net-worth community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Looking ahead, Hermanus and the wider Whale Coast seem set for even more growth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Andrew Amoils, Head of Research at New World Wealth, said lifestyle destinations such as the Whale Coast, the Cape Winelands, and Marrakech are expected to lead the next wave of millionaire migration into Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe increase in Africa\u2019s millionaire population will likely be led by lifestyle destinations such as the Whale Coast, Cape Winelands, and Marrakech,\u201d Amoils explained. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The main industries expected to drive this growth include fintech, eco-tourism, software development, green tech, e-commerce, rare metals mining, healthcare, biotech, media, entertainment, and wealth management. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWith the EU and UK becoming less attractive among the global jet-set, there is potential for Africa to emerge as a major destination for wealthy entrepreneurs,\u201d Amoils said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Hermanus<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Headline Image Credit: The Mira, 39 Marine Drive<\/a> developed by Horizon Capital Residential<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A new report shows that one of South Africa\u2019s coastlines has quietly become one of Africa\u2019s fastest-growing millionaire hotspots.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":745775,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12755],"tags":[17935,10004,21676,6440,853],"class_list":["post-836255","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-property","tag-africa-wealth-report","tag-henley-partners","tag-hermanus","tag-new-world-wealth","tag-south-africa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/836255","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/92"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=836255"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/836255\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":837158,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/836255\/revisions\/837158"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/745775"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=836255"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=836255"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=836255"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}