An average of 320 days of sunshine year round, subtropical climate, waters averaging 21ºC and average temperature lows of 25ºC in the winter months - living on the East Coast of Kwazulu-Natal has got to be a match made in heaven.
One of the oldest and most gracious suburbs in the Durban area , which is situated a mere eight kilometres inland from the city centre, is Westville. Well established, this sprawling suburb features the fourth most expansive average property prices in the province after Umhlanga, Durban North and the Berea. The zone has become an apex business hub in recent years and office parks and complexes have sprung up, attracting major companies and professional firms to the area.
It stands to reason that the area would prove popular with Durbanites and property experts in Westville report that the demand for residential property is still high. The majority of purchasers are in most instances locals who are already established in the area and are merely upgrading due to the fact that their families have settled in the neighbourhood. One of the major attractions is the fact that the region is well acclaimed with excellent facilities such as schools, hospitals and infrastructure at the fingertips of those who reside in the vicinity.
There is certainly no shortage of shops in Westville and The Pavillion Shopping Centre boasts 216 shops, restaurants and entertainment facilities with ample parking space and meets the desires of the most astute shopper. For those who prefer a stroll through the market on a Sunday morning, a visit to the Umkhumbane flea market in Westville would be on the cards. Dubbed “the flea market where people connect” shoppers can view the rich textiles, African curios, jewellery and traditional ethnic wear.
Part of the Durban University (UKZN) campus is situated in Westville educating the nation’s future doctors, dentists and teacher’s, therefore student accommodation is in high demand and retails at a premium. Aside from the demand for property in general in the area, the buy-to-let sector of the market has remained solid according to recent property reports.
Several Estate Agencies in Westville comment that there simply isn’t enough student accommodation to meet the ever-increasing demand. That said, there are a vast number of homes in Westville that boast granny flats on the premises and these flatlets are often let to students in order to subsidise bond repayments or cover additional costs such as rates and taxes.
On the sales front, recently released statistics from Lightstone reveal that although the number of sales that have taken place over the last few years has decreased slightly, price averages are continuing to increase. The average price paid for freehold property in Westville in the last 12 months according to the statistics came in at the R1.5m mark and sectional title faired slightly stronger at just over R2.2m. The highest price achieved for a sectional title unit was R17 250 000. Freehold sales made up the majority of the 104 sales in total, with 78 of the sales being freehold property.
The demographics of the area seem to comprise a good mix of residents across all age groups, however, there has been an influx of recent purchasers who fell in the age category of 36 to 49 years of age, making up 53.27% of recent purchasers to the area. Purchasers between the ages of 18 to 35 years of age comprised almost 20% of recent purchasers.