{"id":879593,"date":"2026-10-25T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-10-25T05:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/?p=879593"},"modified":"2026-10-23T15:40:02","modified_gmt":"2026-10-23T13:40:02","slug":"goodbye-gauteng-towns-people-fleeing-service-failures-are-moving-to","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/property\/879593\/goodbye-gauteng-towns-people-fleeing-service-failures-are-moving-to\/","title":{"rendered":"Goodbye Gauteng \u2013 towns people fleeing service failures are moving to"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Some South Africans are growing increasingly frustrated by declining service delivery in Gauteng, while experts note that property along the Garden Route remains in high demand. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Towns such as George, Knysna, Mossel Bay, and Plettenberg Bay are attracting buyers seeking reliable infrastructure, better-managed municipalities and a different quality of life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the pandemic-era rush to coastal towns, semigration was driven by remote work, which allowed people to prioritise lifestyle over proximity to the office.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, buyers are considering whether a town can provide dependable electricity and water, maintained roads, functioning public services, and long-term employment opportunities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stephan Potgieter, CEO of BetterHome Group and BetterBond, said the trend had evolved into a more strategic relocation movement.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe initial pandemic-driven \u2018lifestyle\u2019 rush to the coast has been replaced by a more strategic, service-driven model,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBuyers are no longer just looking for a view. They are looking for functional infrastructure, efficient service delivery, financial sustainability, and educational opportunities. High-performing municipal governance is directly dictating residential property purchases.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John Loos, senior property sector strategist at FNB Commercial Property Finance, said the Western Cape continued to outperform other parts of South Africa on several factors important to skilled professionals and businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These include municipal service delivery, infrastructure management, water security, electricity reliability, governance, and well-maintained public spaces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although rising property prices have made Cape Town increasingly unaffordable for many buyers, Loos argued that Gauteng\u2019s challenge is not just housing costs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said the province needed stronger economic growth, reliable electricity, better municipal governance, and safer communities to attract skilled professionals and affluent households back in meaningful numbers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With this in mind, property experts have long highlighted the attraction of the Western Cape\u2019s Garden Route. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

George serves as the region\u2019s commercial and services hub, with an airport and established amenities supporting permanent residents and businesses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Freehold homes generally start at around R2.5 million, although properties at this level are limited and can sell quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Starting off with holiday homes before moving permanently <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Apartments range from approximately R1.5 million to R6 million, while established three- to four-bedroom houses can cost up to R10 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luxury properties in estates such as Kingswood and Oubaai exceed R10 million, while homes in Fancourt can fetch more than R50 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mossel Bay offers a mix of permanent family homes, holiday properties, gated estates and retirement developments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

New freehold homes range from approximately R3.2 million to R35 million, depending on their location and specifications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some developments offer modern three-bedroom homes for less than R4 million, while luxury apartments start at around R2.995 million. Knysna is also attracting more permanent residents. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gordon Shutte, Pam Golding Properties\u2019 area principal for Knysna and Plettenberg Bay, said the town was increasingly becoming a place to live rather than simply a holiday destination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He cited Thesen Island, where around 80% of properties were holiday homes when the development began about 25 years ago. Today, significantly more owners live there permanently.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Shutte said healthcare, retirement facilities, proximity to amenities, and the pace of life were becoming increasingly important considerations for buyers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Knysna\u2019s sectional-title apartments generally cost between R1.2 million and R4 million or more, while freehold homes mainly fall between R2.3 million and R8 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Plettenberg Bay also continues to attract holiday-home buyers and permanent residents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Around 800 residential units are in various stages of development, according to Shutte, while the town sells approximately 500 units annually.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vacant plots generally range from R1.3 million to R4 million, while luxury homes can reach R42 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wilderness appeals to buyers seeking a quieter, nature-focused lifestyle, with homes ranging from approximately R4 million to R35 million.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Some South Africans are growing increasingly frustrated by declining service delivery in Gauteng.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":92,"featured_media":858265,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sma_x_autopost_status":"posted","_sma_x_autopost_error":"","_sma_x_post_id":"2114221677672292553","_sma_facebook_post_id":"191437357620492_2248350805985318","_sma_instagram_post_id":"18091745648692271","_sma_x_attempts":1,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12755],"tags":[12029,76,21603,10618,853],"class_list":["post-879593","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-property","tag-betterbond","tag-fnb","tag-garden-route","tag-pam-golding","tag-south-africa"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879593","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=879593"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879593\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":880552,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879593\/revisions\/880552"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/858265"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=879593"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=879593"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/businesstech.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=879593"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}