Robertson is the gateway to Route 62 and has more than 50 wineries and a handful of wellness destinations and spas, many arts and crafts outlets, outdoor adventures, top quality restaurants and coffee shops, nature reserves with fynbos and wildlife, numerous farm stalls, museums and friendly people, a relaxed lifestyle – and authentic, attractive Victorian homes and buildings.
Rawson Properties is expanding its franchise network into the country districts, particularly those of the Western Cape and it now has an office in Robertson that will concentrate on the central Breede River Valley and its surroundings.
Andre van Niekerk who owns the franchise says there are many good reasons more people are moving into this area.
“The Breede River Valley is known for its wine and fruit farms, racecourse studs, small scale vegetable, olive and flower cultivation, and it is growing in popularity because it has such a pleasant lifestyle, exceptionally low levels of crime, and offers large and small homes at roughly half or less the price than Capetonians would pay,” he claims.
“Even in Montagu, which is currently our highest priced town, a two or three bedroom house can be bought for between R1,2- and R3-million. In Robertson it is possible to find such a home for R1-million and in Bonnievale and Ashton for even less,” he said.
For those with the financial reserves farms in the Valley are priced at anything from R3,5- to R15-million – although farms remain scarce because in most cases the farms are passed on to succeeding generations.
The new Rawson franchisees say that by the end of October they will have some 40 to 50 properties on offer.
Meanwhile, Rob Lawrence, national manager of Rawson Finance says that the drop in interest rates is already having a psychological boost on sales in the residential market and many buyers who were “waiting in the wings” have now gone ahead with the purchase.
“We are now fielding 20% more applications than we did in June and July this year,” he says. Interest rates are currently at their lowest level since 1981.
“If you can qualify for a bond then there is no better time to invest in a home – especially as rate rises, although inevitable in the long run, are unlikely before 2012,” says Lawrence.
He concedes that the bond origination sector had been hard hit by the banks’ reluctance to grant bonds but added that a creditor that has maintained a clean credit record would almost certainly have an excellent chance of getting a bond.
“At Rawson Finance our hit rate is now at 54%, which is well up on that of a year ago. For those thinking of buying, now is the time to do so. Home asking prices are still some 15 to 20% off their 2006 peak and this means buyers are getting real value for money.”
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