Appealing seaside homes in rural Melkbosstrand

The residential property stock shortages which have been experienced in all the high demand metro areas of South Africa, for a year or two now, are just as noticeable in those outlying precincts, which have come into favour since the start of the housing market upswing.

This modern, open-plan home in Melkbosstrand has three bedrooms. It is selling for R1.35 million - click here to view.

This is according to Lynette de Lange, an agentRawson Property Group, who says one such precinct is the former fishing village, Melkbosstrand, 30km north of Cape Town on the Cape West Coast.

De Lange says in this area, stock levels are down to 15% of what they were in 2010/11, and prices are continuing to rise at over 10% per annum.

This, of course, means that when a correctly priced home in the popular price bracket of R2.5 million to R3.5 million does come onto the market, it usually sells within three to four weeks, and quite a large number of sales have been put through in 24 to 48 hours of the home being listed.

She says the big surprise this year has been Duynefontein. Until a year or two ago, this area had an unfortunate ‘corporate housing’ image, which stemmed from that most of the homes were built in the 1970s for the Koeberg Power Station staff.

These homes, although large with three bedrooms and 150sqm or more of floor area, were seen as typical ‘company’ housing, and in recent years, many have had to be fixed up so as to become appealing.

This beachfront home in Grotto Bay, Melkbosstrand, has three bedrooms, three reception rooms and an entertainment area. It is on the market for R5.899 million - click here to view.

However, many others have already been upgraded, some given an extra bedroom, an attached apartment, a double garage or a swimming pool. As a result, today virtually nothing at Duynefontein sells at under R2 million, a remarkable upswing for an area where only four years ago the average price was R1.6 million, says De Lange.

In Van Riebeeckstrand, Melkbosstrand’s other ‘satellite suburb’, the higher prices of R4 million to R10 million on the beachfront have resulted in sales being slow. 

She says in Melkbosstrand itself, prices in ‘The Avenues’, the oldest part of the village, are now still in what, for the area, is the affordable bracket that is R2.6 million to R3.5 million, but on the beachfront sellers can and do ask anything from R6.5 million to R10.5 million.

Although these prices are generally seen as high, De Lange says experience has shown that the patient sellers can usually conclude a deal at these price levels within 20% of the asking price. The properties are on a par with the best of any of the South African coastal resorts.

Situated in a Nature Reserve 60km from Cape Town, this four bedroom house in Grotto Bay, Melkbosstrand, is on sale for R2.95 million - click here to view.

De Lange says Melkbosstrand has also, in the last few years, become a popular day-visit destination for upcountry and local visitors who have discovered the many charms of the village. The beachfront restaurants like Café Orca, Castella Amare and the historic Damhuis have become quite well-known and offer good cuisine.

Safety, close proximity to shops, amenities and the MyCiti bus route, as well as good schools and leisure activities like swimming, kite and board surfing, kayaking, fishing and rubber ducking are definite attractions, she says.

“Melkbosstrand continues to have a great deal going for it and this, in turn, means that any investment in this area is an extremely sound one,” says De Lange.