Property Brief – October 2024

The latest BetterBond Property Brief is out!

The widely anticipated interest rate cut finally landed in September, bringing with it mixed emotions. Homeowners sighed a collective sigh of relief that the rate-cutting cycle has finally kicked off, however many economists expressed frustration with a rate cut that was too little and too late. On a more positive note, the BetterBond index of home loan applications increased by 4.5% quarter on quarter, proving that even though the cut was small, there is a promising uptick in property market activity. If there is another rate cut in November, which is almost guaranteed, we will hopefully start to see activity in the real estate sector returning to levels achieved in 2019, albeit gradually.

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

In the Economist’s Notes, Dr Roelof Botha explains why the recent drop in the producer price index to only 2.8% is exceptionally good news for South Africa’s consumer inflation. He also points out other promising indicators such as construction activity bouncing back and the FTSE/JSE All Share Index enjoying its strongest rally in more than a decade. These and other factors are solidifying the possibility of a new growth trend. The future looks brighter for South Africans.

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