The South African Heritage Resource Agency (SAHRA) defines a building as having historic or heritage value if it has been standing for more than 60 years and that means that there are literally thousands of homes that cannot be altered without specific permission from this agency.
In Graaf Reinet on the market for R2.625m
Many of the country’s oldest towns, including Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Graaff-Reinet, Durban, Pietermaritzburg and Pretoria have many buildings with historical value and investors may feel that they are getting a great deal because often the older buildings are cheaper than those that have been restored or revamped.
However, Wayne Rubidge of Pam Golding Properties Karoo region warns that buying and owning a heritage building does have some pitfalls because invariably individual heritage societies seek to protect the buildings that are still standing and have historical significance or architectural merit.
“And it is the heritage societies that will ensure the buildings are protected so that it is impossible, for instance, to change the façade or to alter the building in such a way that it will lose its historical significance,” he says.
Rubidge warns that while the purchase price of an old building might represent excellent value, the reality is that proper restoration work is costly and will generally involve wiring and plumbing, removal of damp and sometimes even the restoration of foundations that have deteriorated over the years.
“There are also the costs of improving the property to include, for instance, a second bathroom because most of the residential properties only had one bathroom and, in some cases, authentic buildings provide an outhouse, rather than a bathroom,” he says.
It seems that in some of the smaller towns in the Karoo there are still bargains to be found and Rubidge says that a good example is that of a fully restored, four-bedroomed home situated on a 4,045sqm plot against a koppie overlooking the town. “This home is on the market for R860k,” he says.
In the well-established Karoo midlands of Middelburg, there is an original Karoo home that was built in the early 1900s and belonged to the first administrator of the Cape Sir Frederik de Waal. This four-bedroomed home is on the market for R550k and a flatlet complete with a bathroom and kitchen.
Graaff-Reinet, perhaps the most well-preserved city in the Karoo is hosting the National Heritage Symposium on October 9 and 10 and it has many farmsteads for sale. One of these is 18km outside the city where the Herbert Baker-designed five bedroom homestead and three-bedroomed guest house is on sale for R2,65-million.
Rubidge says that the Karoo towns offer exceptional value for money and there are many bargains to be found there particularly as there doesn’t seem to be a lot of interest in small town life where the employment opportunities are more limited.
However, he is quick to add that there is a lot of interest coming from people who want to get out of the rat-race.
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