Eskom's policy of employing local residents at its new Kusile power station has boosted the property market in surrounding towns.
The power station is being built roughly in the centre of a triangle formed by Witbank, Delmas and Bronkhorstspruit and is expected to create about 20,000 new job opportunities. As a result, all three towns are experiencing an influx of new labour looking for accommodation, says Koos Pretorius of RealNet Kungwini.
Danie van Staden, manager of Re/Max's Witbank branch, says although the worldwide economic crisis has stymied the development of the power station, it is still set to have a significant impact on demand for housing. "Eskom is taking a six-year view with the construction of the power station and once it is up and running, there will be a big influx of buyers and tenants.
"The power station will draw three types of workers. There are the top level guys who will be here on a contract basis from the US and Europe. They are engineers who are likely to rent houses from R1,2m upwards. Second, the middle class workers will comprise the bulk of the buyers and tenants and will be looking at houses of R700k upwards to rent or buy. Lastly, there is the working class who will have less of an impact on the market as they are often accommodated on-site."
"Companies like Murray & Roberts will be bringing 60 families to Witbank per year for the duration of the project. The rental market is certain to reap good benefits from this project as all price classes experience demand," Van Staden says.
Demand for residential units has supported house prices in Bronkhortspruit, reports Pretorius. "Prices have remained stable in spite of the recession and might even rise in the face of increasing pressure on stock. A large development of more than a thousand units that was supposed to have come on to the market by now has been delayed due to problems experienced by the developer.
"This is to the advantage of sellers, who also benefit from the fact that new Eskom employees can obtain bond finance directly from their employer, which cuts a lot of red tape associated with obtaining bonds through financial institutions."
Pretorius adds that several Bronkhorstspruit sellers have, however, withdrawn their properties from the market with a view to renting them out thanks to increased demand for rental properties and monthly rentals that now range between R4k and R6k.
Smaller developments on sub-divided "burgher erven" are slowly coming to the market at prices ranging between R650k and R850k. However, says Pretorius, most of these units are outside the target price of between R500k and R700k that is sought-after by new Eskom employees. - Eugene Brink
For more information contact Koos Pretorius on 013 932 3906 or Danie van Staden on 013 697 4028.
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