Soccer fans not rushing to rent

DURBANITES who want to cash in on 2010 by letting their houses, investment flats, spare rooms and granny flats to soccer fans might be disappointed.

Early indications are the soccer bonanza isn't going to be quite the party landlords had expected.

Most Durban agents said interest was muted. They were responding to an internet article that asked: will Durban be a 2010 property rental dud?

There will be seven 2010 games in the city, starting on June 13 and ending on July 7 with a semi-final.

Keith Wakefield, CEO of Wakefields Estate Agents, said that in Umhlanga there seemed to be an increase in client expectations around the soccer events.

"But it is a matter of waiting to see what happens. There is a lot of talk and few commitments. For example, the Wakefields Lagoon branch rental division has clients holding out for good short-term rentals during the event and not renewing long-term contracts.

"The Gateway branch has reported an increase in sales to investors hoping to make rental profits during the event."

Grant Gavin, broker-owner of RE/MAX Panache, said home owners were beginning to find out that the option of letting space out to tourists was not going to be as lucrative as they had first hoped.

"Agents' commission of 25-30 percent comes off the top, and the rest is subject to income tax. You start to question whether it's worth the hassle of moving the family out for six weeks."

Tony Hickman, KZN chairman of Seeff, said branches had been "inundated" with inquiries.

"Bookings have been slower than expected, but we anticipate an escalation closer to kick-off. In Pietermaritzburg, our branch has confirmed a booking of 250 people for 12 nights at R800 each a night."

Kim Woods, who manages Seeff Berea, said bookings were the result of sustained exposure of KwaZulu-Natal properties abroad.

"We have been inundated with people from all areas wanting to rent out their homes, ranging from R300 to R5 000 each a night."

Woods said most visitors wanted accommodation for between two and five nights.

"This is far different from what we expected. Most people enquiring are looking for cheap accommodation and most landlords expect to retire on the money they make.

Carol Reynolds, area principal for Pam Golding Properties in Durban North and Umhlanga, said: "Enquiries from overseas visitors are still slow. We anticipate an increase in demand in the coming months and look forward to general spin-offs for the property market."

Property Guide (Sunday Tribune)

Posted at 07:51AM Feb 07, 2010 by Editor in Residential  |