In property price news from South Africa, the latest property price index reports that the average price of a property increased by 1.2% year-on-year in June.

These numbers come from Ooba, which is the largest mortgage company in the South Africa.  Saul Geffen, chief executive of Ooba, points out that this upturn in prices may not be a sign that the market is recovering. ‘….it may be attributed to a shift to higher priced properties in June, given affluent homebuyers’ ability to better adapt to strict bank lending practices,’ said .

Accordig to Ooba, the average purchase price was R784,427(£59,439) in June 2009, up from R774,449 (£58,683) in June 2008. In addition, the month-on-month average purchase price has increased nominally by 1.4% from £58,657 in May of this year.

But there are more numbers, not all good. The average price of a home purchased by a first time buyer has fallen by 14.1% year-on-year, which is a drop of 16.8% in comparison to May 2009.

Property purchasers now require an average deposit of 18.9% of their purchase price in order to secure a home.  Last year, the average deposit needed was only 12.2%.

Ooba predicts that recover will not occur entirely until  mid 2010.

Real estate agents have also joined together to help people avoid foreclosure by implementing a quick sale scheme, the Quick Sell Plan,  which was introduced by FNB Home Loans.

Under this scheme, home owners benefit because they can sell their property quickly without going into foreclosure and losing their credit rating, and buyers get good properties without having to pay a deposit. 

A minimum reserve price is established on each Quick Sell property and buyers, introduced by the FNB partner agents, are offered mortgages up to 100%.The buyers also receive a 50% discount on transfer costs and loan registration.   The buyer must meeti FNB’s affordability criteria and FICA requirements

The commission of the real estate agents is paid by FNB.