Area Review: Bryanston is Best

Mention that you own a pozzie in Bryanston and you are oh so posh, baby. Bryanston reeks of cash; is home to the exclusive Bryanston Country Club; and has enough boutiques to satisfy the most ardent Northern suburbs shopper. And there’s the uber trendy Bryanston Organic Market on a Thursday and Saturday – a firm favourite with the locals. This is the stuff that upward mobility is made of.

Bryanston is one of the few areas that’s close to the city centre and yet still has that country feel. It’s also a popular suburb to raise a family. Some of Gauteng’s finest schools are close by. Private schools include: Brescia House School, St Peter’s Schools, St Stithians College, Michael Mount Waldorf School, Redhill School, The American International School of Johannesburg, King’s School and Crawford Schools. The government schools in the area include Bryanston Primary, Bryanston High, Bryanston Laerskool, Bryandale Primary, and Randburg Hoërskool.

Judy and Paul Hannington are among the lucky ones. They’ve owned a home in Bryanston for the past seven years. Their beautiful, family house is on a neat 1200sm property close to the Bryan Park Shopping Centre. The couple and their three children moved up from Cape Town in 2002 and haven’t looked back.

“We love the area. It’s definitely better than most in Joburg North. It’s convenient with great amenities and facilities right on our doorstep. We are also part of the church in our street and Judy is the principle at Little Flock Pre School in Bryanston, so it’s great for us in terms of location.”

On the down side, Paul says that there are days when the traffic congestion in and out of Bryanston can be nasty.

But Paul says that in just a few years the Hannington’s house has more than doubled in value.

According to Property Research gurus Lightstone, freestanding homes in Bryanston, like Paul and Judy’s, haven’t done too shabby over the past four years.

Lightstone says that what would have cost you about R650K in 2004, would have sold for R1,45m in 2008. That said, sales in the area have been remarkably slow over the same period. But, that could just mean that Bryanston home owners are holding onto their investments tightly.

Patrick and Sandy Tripp have lived in Bryanston for 20 years. The Tripps live just a few kilometres from the Hanningtons, not far from the Bryanston Wedge Shopping Centre. In 1989, they paid just over R200K for their delightful home which sits on a 2600sq erf. According to the municipality’s valuation, their property is now worth more than R2m.

Lightstone records that freestanding homes in the area where the Tripps live have done remarkably well.

In 2004, the average price of a freehold property was R1,6m. In 2008, the average price of freehold properties was in the region of about R3,2m. Sectional schemes in the area haven’t done badly either. These averaged about R500K four years ago and in less than five years, they are valued around R900K.

The Tripps also just love living in Bryanston. “It’s convenient in that we are on the right side of the highway. We also have a mature garden with a great variety of birdlife; and we love the people in the area!”

Patrick lists the Bryanston Country Club, Bryan Park Shopping Centre and Sandton Clinic as handy to have so nearby. Patrick also says that the roads have become very busy in Bryanston due to the huge developments in Douglasdale and Fourways.

So whether you are looking for rolling lawns and Tuscan-style estates, or nifty townhouses in a larny suburb, Bryanston is best. Just make sure you don’t work too far from home or you might find traffic to be a tad testing.