Property Brief – August 2024

The latest BetterBond Property Brief is out!

Even though the Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee decided to sit tight with the prime overdraught lending rate for yet another cycle, in this issue of Property Brief we can see that the positive data does, although marginally, outweigh the negative. Most encouraging is the 18.9% quarter-on-quarter increase in the value of building plans passed and the 29.4% increase in loans granted for building purposes. While this is positive, we will need to see a solid increase in new property developments (after the lull) in preparation for housing supply shortages if the interest rates start to drop, and activity in the property market increases.

The full list of data points included in this Property Brief, is as follows:

In the Economist’s Notes, Dr Roelof Botha points out that the Reserve Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee’s refusal to depart from an overly restrictive monetary policy stance has resulted in the ratio of debt costs to disposable income reaching a level of 9.2% – the highest in 15 years. Fortunately, the resilience of the rand may edge inflation closer to the mid-point of the 3% to 6% target range, improving our chances of finally seeing an interest rate cut sooner rather than later. And the government of national unity (GNU) is good news for the business sector. Although the road will be bumpy, if the GNU remains committed, we could see a higher level of economic growth. It’s also comforting to know that the easing of lending rates is predicted to happen in the near future. Further proof of the new-found optimism, says Botha, is the recent stellar performance of the rand against the dollar.

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