South African property buyers have changed over the last two decades

Rising property prices, local socioeconomic trends, and the effects of global instability are shaping the South African housing market and its buyers in 2026.

“This is being compounded by poorly designed property market mechanics not producing sufficient stock fast enough, resulting in a significant backlog and limited options for buyers,” says Renier Kriek, Managing Director of innovative home financing company Sentinel Homes. “The current outlook for the property market is also markedly different from what it was at the beginning of 2026, when it looked like plain sailing ahead.”

Market dynamics are being flipped

Usually, higher interest rates result in properties remaining on the market for longer, with buyers hesitant to take on the extra debt. This year, the opposite is true, with time-on-market being reduced in spite of increasing interest rates.

Kriek says this is primarily a result of low stock: “Insufficient stock driving up prices means owners cannot sell their property for enough to buy a new home, so they are holding,” he says. “Current buyers, on average, are also likely to be older and more affluent than usual, meaning that economic shock such as inflation and rising interest rates will have a smaller impact on them and their decision to buy.”

If a property does list, those that do list are immediately snapped up by waiting buyers, creating the illusion of a thriving market.

The 2026 South African homeowner

A recent report from Lightstone on the under-35 segment, headlined “Profile of young buyers change but numbers fall,” also reveals how conditions have evolved across the market.

While the number of young buyers has declined compared to 20 years ago, age distribution data shows increased buying activity in the over-35 segment. This suggests that homeownership is being deferred until purchasers are better established financially and can afford current prices. It may also reflect the start of a cultural shift, where the culture will absorb the necessity of renting for longer.

Also, young black buyers have more than doubled in the last 20 years, says the report, while the number of young white buyers has dropped by a third.

“We’re seeing transformation at work as more black homeowners take their rightful place in the market,” says Kriek. “There is no reason why the demographics of property buyers should not reflect the general demograhpics of the country, whether relating to race, gender or age. To the extent that it may not, at a given time, we need to diagnose the impediment and clear it.”

Likewise, for the first time in 2026, the number of female-only buyers (34%) ranked higher than both male-female buyers (31%) and male-only buyers (33%). “This reflects the ‘houses before spouses’ ideology touted on social media, as young women—who traditionally take responsibility earlier than young men—are forging ahead with their lives and careers, no longer waiting for a male partner to catch up,” says Kriek.

What buyers are looking for

What type of properties buyers are currently considering depends very much on their financial status and lifestyle aspirations.

However, Kriek says the trend towards sectional title ownership shows no sign of abating. “This is especially true of first-time buyers who now almost overwhelmingly favour sectional title properties,” he says.

This is understandable as such properties offer amenities that would be otherwise unaffordable to own or maintain outright. They are not only cheaper than freestanding homes, but their benefits are perceived to outweigh any downside of communal living. They also offer an excellent stepping stone to freestanding homes.

That said, living spaces are becoming smaller every year and Kriek says they will continue to do so. As in countries like the UK, buyers will increasingly look for properties that offer access to “third spaces”—that is, bars, gyms, restaurants, and other places to socialise outside the home.

Semigration?

Gauteng remains the largest net recipient of internal migration in South Africa, and it has held that title all along, even when semigration filled the headlines. The question is: who is moving there?

Property prices in Gauteng are not outpacing inflation specifically because of poor service delivery.

This will hopefully change as promised structural reforms begin to bear fruit. Still, many people migrate there for affordability, especially where semigration has forced them from previous areas due to increased property and living costs.

Generally, buyers remain cautious of KwaZulu-Natal and many homeowners have chosen to leave the province. “However, as far as the property market is concerned, it continues to putter along,” says Kriek.

The Eastern Cape is likely heading into some headwinds with the loss of automobile sector jobs, which is likely to impact its economy in the near term. This will have a downstream effect on its property markets as well.

Finally, the Western Cape property market is still strong. “Unfortunately, prices remain unaffordable, the supply in the market is not growing fast enough, there are not enough houses, and the situation will not change soon,” says Kriek. “Buying as soon as possible is the priority in such circumstances, otherwise prices will continue to run away from you.”

In a nutshell

South African property buyers have changed over the last two decades. They are older, more diverse, and face unprecedented conditions stemming not only from conflict in the Middle East but also local economic uncertainty.

They face the prospect of buying now in case things get worse or holding out until conditions improve, with no clear answer in sight. Yet, at the same time, they are burdened with both unaffordable home prices and a lack of quality stock in the market.

“The current South African buyer has more to consider and to contend with than their counterpart from 20 years ago,” says Kriek.

ENDS