Regardless of market conditions and political woes, prime property wherever you are in the world seems to continue to serve as a store of value for the world’s wealthiest investors. In Cape Town, the Atlantic Seaboard is arguably Africa’s best location in which to invest, with suburbs like Clifton, Bantry Bay and Mouille Point attracting the well-heeled. Property developer Stuart Chait has produced some notable gems in this area in recent years, including a home in a Nettleton Road, Clifton estate which he was hoping to sell for R150m. Unfortunately, a bank funding this property grew restless about the liability on its books and insisted that it go up for auction. Although R90m sounds like a lot of money – and is, when you consider this is effectively paying R55 000 for every square metre of this property – it was a far cry from Chait’s expectations. Chait reckons Clare Wiese – daughter of one of South Africa’s wealthiest individuals, retail entrepreneur Christo Wiese – got the bargain of a life time. He would have preferred to hold out a little longer for a buyer prepared to pay more than R90m. But the auctioneer and estate agents that marketed the home reckon R90m reflects the property’s market value. Chait may well have been right: a recent study on high net worth individuals indicates that rich people are on the hunt for more property, with more buyers than sellers. Auctions are known to attract sellers who need to offload properties in hurry, which arguably would have sent a signal to potential buyers that they could put in some cheeky offers for this property. Perhaps keeping the home on the market a little longer would have generated a higher return for Chait? – Jackie Cameron
Staff writer
Clare Wiese, the CEO of a jewellery house, put in the highest bid ever achieved on a residential property in South Africa, reports Nashira Davids at Times Live. She bid R90m at an auction for the cliffside home in Nettleton Road, Clifton, which is one of the most expensive streets in South Africa and probably the best address in Cape Town.
Wiese is the daughter of one of the richest men in the country – Christo Wiese. However, Clare is an accomplished businesswoman in her own right, and the founder of contemporary fine jewellery brand Paka Paka, according to Times Live.
The six-bedroom mansion in Nettleton Road was developed by property mogul Stuart Chait, who co-founded MvelaProp with Tokyo Sexwale, says the website.
Chait put the house on the market months ago for R150m, but it failed to attract a buyer. Finally, Sasfin Bank ordered the auction, considering a loan on the property “too big an exposure on their books.
The property developer believes Wiese got a bargain at the auction.
“We were recently offered a R3.5-million rental for a two-week period over Christmas and New Year by the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, and have had several rental offers at R150000 a day,” Chait told Times Live.
“We are very excited about the purchase. I have lived in Clifton all my life and consider it home,” Clare Wiese said afterwards, to the reporter.
Joff van Reenen, director and lead auctioneer for The High Street Auction Company, said it was the highest-ever bid achieved on a residential property.
Clare Wiese snaps up a luxury home with breathtaking views across the Atlantic. Take a quick tour of the property, by watching the short video.
Spectacular Clifton Mansion: How Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty describes Clare Wiese’s new Clifton home. The company marketed it as “a timeless sea side residence situated in Clifton just below Lions Head with captivating views of the Atlantic Ocean and the Twelve Apostles”.
Among its features:
Magnificent views
6 Bedrooms
8 Bathrooms
6 Garages
Stand size: 1 627m²
Gym, jacuzzi, sauna
Swimming pool
Wine cellar
Elevator to all levels
Study
Entertainment areas
Air conditioning
Located in Nettleton Ridge, an exclusive estate comprising 4 individual homes, accessed from a single, private-use driveway
24 Hour security control & guardhouse
Affluent individuals want more real estate – and more privacy
From Chas Everitt International
Real estate is a growing passion for high-net-worth individuals and is often seen as the ultimate sign of success. It is a lifestyle choice, a discretionary purchase that represents recognition and reward for their hard work as much as an investment.
That’s the finding of the Affluent Perspective 2016 Global Study just released by international market research company YouGov in association with Luxury Portfolio International©.
Researchers who polled more than 5 000 wealthy individuals worldwide for the study found that over the next three years the intention to purchase real estate far exceeds the intention to sell, globally as well as in the US, which is where more than half the High Net Worth Individuals (HNWIs) in the world live.
Within the US, the study found, 25% of the wealthy are looking to purchase more real estate in the next three years, while 18% are looking to sell. Outside the US, 45% of the wealthy are looking to purchase with 23% looking to sell.
Nettleton Road, Clifton – "It's the most sought-after road on the African continent" https://t.co/nX8i2XhGhJ pic.twitter.com/wMTcL2YTke
— Cape Town Vacationer (@CT_Vacationer) March 22, 2016
“In other words, the balance of potential buyers to sellers outside of the US is almost 2 to 1 right now, which is positive and encouraging news for the luxury real estate sector in countries like SA,” says Berry Everitt, CEO of Chas Everitt International, which is the SA affiliate of Luxury Portfolio International©, the luxury face of Leading Real Estate Companies of the World© (LeadingRE).
“A unique confluence of global events, such as the economic uncertainty presented by Brexit, the flux of the Chinese economy, political unknowns derived from the race for the Presidency in the US and global threats caused by terrorism or the refugee crisis have resulted in not-surprising reports of a softening in the market, particularly in those markets that had been favoured by global buyers, like London, New York, San Francisco, Paris and Hong Kong,” he notes.
“And yet, as personal wealth continues to expand around the world, affluent people are demonstrating optimism about property alongside their caution. The survey clearly revealed that in addition to feeling good about their lives and being confident about their decisions, most of the Global Top 1% (individuals with a net worth of $3m or more) have a very strong intent to purchase more real estate.”
As for which home characteristics are most highly prized by affluent buyers, the YouGov research found that privacy and distance from other homes topped the list for 61% of survey respondents, followed by a luxury bathroom for the master suite (60%); energy efficiency and environmental design (56%); and kitchen with fitted high-end appliances (55%).
Other popular features were double walk-in cupboards off the main bedroom, a great outdoor entertainment area, an open floor-plan, a kitchen area conducive to entertaining, and proximity to shopping and services, work, school and hospitals.
In addition, Everitt says, the researchers found that affluent buyers are increasingly relying on top independent real estate companies like Chas Everitt International rather than the big corporate brands to give them what they want, which is a high level of very personalised service, a better selection of listings, and a deeper consideration for their privacy and security.
“This represents a major shift in the luxury real estate sector, especially in SA, where the market has historically been driven by the seller’s agent – and it is an important consideration for sellers when choosing an agency to market list their property. They need to be sure that it is one like ours that is continuously fostering relationships with high-end buyers that are based on personal trust and understanding.”
Statement: The High Street Auction Company
A winning bid of R90 million on a super luxury Clifton villa on Thursday (Nov 24) smashed South Africa’s residential auction price record by more than R30m.
This according to Joff van Reenen, Director and Lead Auctioneer for The High Street Auction Company that in the same sale auctioned off 31 lots of property from Clifton to Ballito to the Magaliesberg, with a total value of more than R500m.
Van Reenen says the previous residential record bid was on a house in Sandhurst, Johannesburg, which was for R54m. The residential crown adds yet another feather to Van Reenen’s cap; he also holds the record for the highest bid on a single property ever achieved in South Africa when he knocked down the former Kyalami Grand Prix racetrack for R205m in 2014.
Clifton’s Nettleton road the priciest to live on https://t.co/BSrrCzCUCY pic.twitter.com/4RCLtaDwgB
— Times LIVE (@TimesLIVE) March 17, 2016
Van Reenen says after an accelerated marketing campaign in conjunction with Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty, the bank-instructed Clifton sale of the Nettleton Ridge house provoked “live responses” from 29 countries, with more than 5 000 views of the house on their company website prior to the sale.
“This is just counting the serious viewers,” explains the auctioneer, “people who spent several minutes on the web page or downloaded the full prospectus. General views were in the hundreds of thousands.
“The hammer fell at R90m, and the sale is now under confirmation for a five-day period. Confirmation periods are normal within the auction industry and not exclusive to this property, but five working days is the standard period for The High Street Auction Company and this effectively means the bank can exercise its right to accept or reject the offer within the period, and no other offers will be entertained during that time.
“Bank representatives attended the main auction in Johannesburg and are satisfied that it was conducted with all the legal compliance requirements met. The auction is non-suspensive, which means that the buyer will either pay cash or have a pre-approved bond.”
Van Reenen says Thursday’s auction of the Clifton house to a certain extent corrected the market in the area: “The house was previously for sale for R150 million and not even buyers with high value foreign currency to spend were prepared to consider that price.
“If you market your property at the correct asking price for the area and the current market conditions you will find a buyer, as this auction has just demonstrated.”
Van Reenen says it’s interesting to note that a local Clifton resident made the highest bid. “It’s someone who lives in Clifton and wants to stay there, so the property should remain in South African hands.”
Lew Geffen, Chairman of Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty that jointly marketed the Clifton mansion, says he’s not in the least surprised by the quick sale.
“’We’ve seen this time and time again that when a trophy home finally comes onto the market as a bank-instructed sale it will always attract the right buyer at the right price because it corrects the market.
“Mark Thatcher’s house in Cape Town was sold under similar circumstances and an auction is an outstanding way to ensure a quick, effective and market-related result.”
While Geffen would not identify the top bidders, he did confirm that they were local. They bid telephonically from the house in Clifton, where the auction was being live-streamed from Johannesburg. Others also followed the auction on The High Street Company’s newly launched app.
“After an age on the market with no movement, two world-class brands in the form of The High Street Auction Company and Lew Geffen Sotheby’s International Realty pooled their immense marketing and selling skills and in one day achieved for the instructing bank what the seller had previously been unable to do with all the time in the world, because his asking price was simply too high for the market.
“We now have serious, committed buyers at the table with the bank that took the property, and that’s all that counts in the end.”
Van Reenen says this sale proves that only the right sort of properties are auctionable, and while auctioneers and realtors generally view each other as natural enemies, under the right circumstance well-aligned companies can work devastatingly well together and get the right result.
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