Named after the site of one of the most famous massacres in Scotland, the name Glencoe is widely thought to mean 'Glen of Weeping'. Glencoe, a small coal mining town in KwaZulu-Natal, shares the name with a number of other towns around the world and was undoubtedly named by a homesick Scot.
Situated in the heart of an area that was the scene of some of South Africa’s most significant battles over a period of more than 200 years, Glencoe and surrounds is popular with history buffs and tourists alike.
An Internet search for property for sale doesn’t reveal much, which is surprising given that the area has enjoyed relatively good sales numbers over the past year. Statistics that have been sourced from Lightstone reveal that there have been a total of 42 transfers in the area in the last 12 months. Property in Glencoe is dominated by the freehold sector of the market, with 100 percent of property falling under this banner. There is no sectional title property available.
The stats further reveal that 51 percent of residents have lived in Glencoe for longer than 11 years, with only 19.88 percent having resided there for less than 5 years. The majority of purchasers (53 percent) who have bought property in the town in the last 12 months were between 39 and 49 years of age. The area does certainly offer potential purchasers affordability, as all of the transactions concluded in the last year came in at less than R800 000.
The average price paid for a property in Glencoe in 2011 reflected at R346 000 and, although this figure is fairly low when compared to other regions of KwaZulu-Natal, the stats indicate that property price averages here have not been affected by the economic downturn. This is evident as in 2010, the average price paid came in at a lower R288 000 and in 2009 the average reflected at R288 000.
Sales volumes on the other hand have been dealt a fatal blow when compared to the 100 sales concluded in 2005. This said, 2009 was particularly sluggish, with only 32 sales being registered at the Deeds Office. The situation improved only slightly in 2010, when 36 transfers took place.
With sales volumes seemingly steadily on the road to recovery and stable growth in terms of price averages attained in the district, the outlook looks positive and the market is hopefully set to remain on an even keel for the foreseeable future.
As far as mortgage lending is concerned, although price averages are reasonable, in 2007 South African banks approved and loaned just over R33-million to property purchasers. This picture has changed somewhat and in 2011, just under R12-million in mortgage finance was loaned by the banks.