Winds of change blowing through The Parks

When the jacaranda trees that line their streets bloom in October, it's easy to see why the heritage suburbs along Jan Smuts Avenue in Johannesburg are collectively known as the city's "purple patch" - and why this continues year-after-year to be an affluent and highly desirable area among prospective home buyers.

Bounded by Westcliff Drive to the south and the Braamfontein Spruit to the west, the area includes Parkhurst, Parktown North, Parkview and Parkwood as well as Craighall Park and Saxonwold, and is often also just called The Parks.

And it is currently unusually active in terms of property sales, says Rory O'Hagan, principal of the local Chas Everitt International franchise. "These suburbs are so sought-after that there is usually a shortage of properties for sale relative to the number of people keen to buy, but the market has been really stirred up by Covid-19, and this is generating new property sales patterns.

"For example, quite a number of homeowners in The Parks who have lived there for decades have been prompted by the pandemic to downscale to an apartment or a retirement village, or to "downshift" to a life in a rural town now that they have found that they can actually do most of their work from home and don't need to live close to an office in the city. At the same time, a lot of people in their 30s and 40s - and especially parents with young children - realized during lockdown just how nice it would be to have a garden in a walkable neighbourhood and not be cooped up in an apartment or townhouse all day, and they are jumping at the rare opportunity to acquire homes in The Parks."

Indeed, according to property data company Lightstone, the past three months account for up to 38% of all the home sales recorded in these suburbs over the past year. In addition, while recent sellers have predominantly been in the over-50 age group, about a quarter of all recent buyers have been in the 18-35 age range and a further 50% in the 36-50 age group.

In short, he says, there is a new generation of home owners coming into these suburbs, "and the trend is being amplified by the current increase in affordability due to low interest rates, the availability of bond finance and the fact that home price growth overall has been slow for the past few years".

Overall, The Parks offers the benefits of proximity to the business hubs of Parktown, Rosebank and Sandton and to many of the city's top schools and tertiary institutions* as well as the attractive 'green spaces' of Zoo Lake and Delta Park. Strong residents' associations, regular security patrols and boomed streets foster good security and a sense of safety, and younger families are also attracted by the fact that many of the older homes in these areas have already undergone extensive renovation and modernization.

However, each suburb still has its own "personality" and particular appeal for certain buyers. In Parkhurst, for example, prospective buyers like fact that the stands are mostly only around 500sqm and easy to maintain, and that they can safely walk to the shops and trendy eateries along Fourth Avenue and Sixth Street. Parkhurst also has its own highly-regarded primary school, and there are no major arterial roads running through the suburb so it is quite secluded and manages to maintain a village atmosphere even in the middle of a major city.

In Parkview, the stands are somewhat larger (average 1000sqm), many properties offer lovely views across the Zoo Lake parkland and a golf course, and there are still many "character" homes with pressed ceilings, stained-glass windows and door panels and Oregon pine floors. Local schools include Parkview Primary, Jan Cilliers and Japari, and home prices currently average around R3,9m for freehold properties and R2m for sectional title apartments.

Saxonwold, which was originally a forest plantation that supplied timber to Johannesburg's mines, is known for its stately mansions and wide streets lined by very large trees, while Parkwood and Parktown North, which both border Rosebank, are most popular with young professionals and executives as they offer a bigger choice of modern apartments, duplexes and remodeled homes and proximity to a Gautrain station, upmarket shopping centres and nightlife.

In Parkwood, freehold home prices average R3,9m while sectional title units sell for an average of R1,5m currently, but in Parktown North, homes are generally somewhat larger and sell at an average of R4,1m for freehold properties and R1,9m for sectional title units.

The northernmost suburb in The Parks is Craighall Park, and it is currently the most affordable - despite the fact that it borders Hyde Park and some of the most expensive real estate in SA. It offers a good mix of family homes at an average price of R3,4m and sectional title apartments and townhouses at an average price of R2m - and residents appreciate the fact that it also has its own primary schools, a private high school and shops, and that it is on the Gautrain bus route for Sandton.

*Top schools surrounding The Parks include St Katharine's, The Ridge, Pridwin, Roedean, Kingsmead, St John's, St Theresa's, the German school, the King David schools in Victory Park, De La Salle Holy Cross, Auckland Park Prep, Greenside High, King Edward and the Parktown Girls and Parktown Boys high schools. Tertiary institutions include Wits, the University of Johannesburg, Lishof, the Greenside College of Design and both the GIBS and Wits business schools.

Issued by Chas Everitt International

For more information

Call Berry Everitt on

011-801-2500

Or visit www.chaseveritt.co.za