Gauteng holiday home buyers who are unnerved by the price of South Africa's coastal property are turning their sights inland, some finding value and adventure in almost-unheard of towns.

Amongst these is Lady Grey, a small village in the North Eastern Cape, surrounded on three sides by the Witteberg Mountains and the fourth by a golf course.

Named after the wife of Cape governor Sir George Grey, the village is no longer the central trading hub of the area as it once was. Rather, according to local estate agent Anina de Beer of Pam Golding Properties (PGP) Aliwal North, its character today is essentially residential with a fast-growing tourist component.

Referring to it as the Clarens of the Eastern Cape, De Beer says its scenic surroundings, range of outdoor activities and inexpensive property are its dominant attractions for home buyers looking to escape the hustle and bustle on weekends and during the holidays. Ideally positioned as a stopover for those en-route to the Tiffendell Ski Resort, it is also home to the acclaimed Lady Grey Arts Academy.

De Beer says the majority of her purchasers currently hail from the "Big Smoke", some scouting for weekend and holiday homes, others looking at a more permanent change of lifestyle. Most sought-after are Lady Grey's historical homes, many of which were built to face the original Dutch Reformed Church.

Yet, despite their priceless heritage value, even the restored houses on the best side of town offer rare value, she says. Amongst the best example of these is a four-bedroom, two- bathroom house with self-contained cottage, on the market right now for R650k.

Even Lady Grey's top-end homes cost substantially less than Absa's national average of R963k as evidenced by De Beer's record R900k sale in January this year.

On average, expect to pay anywhere from R390k to around R500k for a property that needs renovating.

Vacant land, though now considered pricey by locals, is still a bargain by Gauteng standards. Depending on location, stands vary in price from R165k to around R250k and in size from 1,000sq m to 1,500sq m, she says.

Increasingly proud of the intrinsic value of their village, local residents are railing against the construction of new, out-of-character buildings which have risen out of the ground in the wake of lax municipal building controls.

One such person is Lady Grey genealogist Dalene Oertel, whose home was once the village jail, built in 1889.

Oertel is a staunch advocate of renovating and building in accordance with the traditional architecture of the area, which includes wide verandas, stoeps, broekie lace and wrought iron.

In addition to paying more heed to the building regulations of both the local SENQU and Rhodes Municipalities, she says people are also being encouraged to build facing the Dutch Reformed Church. Further, they are requested to avoid the use of face brick exteriors, be careful not to obstruct their neighbours' views of the mountains and to give their houses names in the interests of enhancing their charm.

For more information contact Anina de Beer on 083 262 0131 or send an email.

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