The demand for property in the Durban North area has been fuelled by the exodus of big business out of central Durban to the North Coast. This entire region of the city has boomed in recent times and demand for property has risen dramatically. Buyers who are looking for well-priced properties that are more affordable than the other, often more-expensive, neighbouring areas are drawn to the area. This is not to say that property in this region comes cheap, the average price of a home in the area hovers around the R2m mark. Lightstone’s statistics indicate that 25% of recent buyers fall into the 19-35 year age bracket and approximately 65% of recent buyers were aged between 36 and 49 years. The fact that those with young families are moving into the area comes as no surprise. There are a number of excellent schools in the area including Northwood, a high school for boys and Danville Park Girls’ High School. Primary education is serviced by Chelsea Preparatory School as well Northlands Junior and Senior Primary school. Those wishing to educate their children privately can enrol them at the nearby Crawford College, which is situated in La Lucia. Freehold properties dominate in the area with Lightstone’s figures indicating that 95.4% of all residential properties built in this suburb fall into this sector. Only 4.6% of homes in the area fall into the sectional title category. Although the recession and consequent fall out in the property market has affected sales in the area, the region still recorded 127 freehold sales over the past 12 months. Of these, eight deals were concluded on properties priced between R400 000 to R800 000. A total of 41 transactions took place for properties priced between R800 000 and R1.5m and 61 sales were finalised in the R1.5m to R3m price range. Properties priced above the R3m mark also performed well and the statistics show that 17 sales for prices exceeding R3m took place. A total of seven sectional title sales took place during the same period. One sale was concluded in the R800 000 to R1.5m bracket and six properties in the R1.5m to R3m range were sold. It appears that local residents remain loyal to the area and once settled, are not quick to move on. Statistics reveal that 43.38% of homeowners have lived at their current address for 11 years or longer. This comes as no surprise given the facilities that the area offers. In addition to the highly-regarded educational establishments, the proximity to Durban Central as well as upmarket shopping centres in Umhlanga remains a huge drawcard for investors. In addition, there are a number of renowned sporting clubs that offer a wide variety of sporting disciplines in the area. These include the nearby Beachwood Golf and Country Club, Glenwood Old Boys’ Club (now known as the Riverside Sports Club), DHS Old Boys’ Club, as well as Crusaders. There are a wealth of shopping and entertainment facilities on offer, with the area boasting some of the finest restaurants in the Durban area.