|
You are here: Settling in
 Housing Renting Property in South Africa |
|
Expatriate Housing Property Rental |
|
|
|
Renting in Cape Town is a viable alternative to purchasing property and a relatively simple process.
When renting property, the tenant normally pays no fees to the estate agent for their services, but a deposit of a single month's rent is usually required before moving in. Also, be aware that in some cases it is the tenant's responsibility to have the water, electricity and landline connected.
Rental prices vary a lot. The most expensive suburbs to rent are Clifton, Camps Bay, Bantry Bay and Constantia. Rental prices go up in these areas in summer (remember that SA summer season is the same time as Northern Hemisphere's winter), and availability drops. Best time to look for rentals in these areas is May through September. Prices in the other areas are less seasonally affected.
Check Classifieds pages of Cape Argus on Saturdays and Cape Times on Wednesdays to find available rentals. Alternatively, contact real estate agents in the area. See list of agents here.
When dealing with an agent, keep in mind that most lessors submit their properties to multiple agents. Each of them may list it at a different price, so shop around and negotiate. Do not divulge your rental budget to agents, rather provide them with a detailed list of requirements that a rental needs to meet - number of bedrooms, location, garden, pool, alarm system etc. Otherwise you may find that all properties that even loosely fit your criteria are priced precisely at the higher end of your budget.
Some agents, such as Pam Golding, Seeff and Dogon, list properties available for rent online. Most, however, either do not have functional websites, or update them very rarely, so dealing with them on the phone is the most effective strategy. Last updated September 04, 2009 |
