Buying off Plan a safe bet?

Buying off the plan is undoubtedly a leap of faith and the dangers are twofold.

First you have to believe that the property you can only see on a plan will eventuate exactly as specified within a certain time. If, like most of us, you do not find it easy to envisage exactly what you will get, it's probably worth getting help from an expert. Even if there is a display suite it may not be truly representative of the finished product.

 Other precautions you should take include:

• Only buy from developers with a good reputation and whose work you can see.
• Make sure every detail is specified in the contract, including fixtures and fittings — for example, not just a stainless steel oven, but a particular brand and model.

The second major pitfall relates to price. It's difficult to establish whether the asking price is fair when there are no benchmarks. "Buy tomorrow's real estate at today's prices" is the spiel of the marketers. That assumes property prices always rise, which of course is not the case. For example, if you bought a unit off the plan three years ago in Cape Town's Camps Bay and are settling on it now, it is likely to be worth less than you are paying.

With investments be very suspicious of rental guarantees, which can be used to set artificially high prices. For example, if gross rental returns are 10 percent in an area and the vendor guarantees a $400 a week rental, that would price a property at $208,000. But say that market rent is really $350 a week, meaning it's only worth $182,000. If you fall for this you would pay 12.5 percent above market. The vendor only has to pay $5000 to guarantee the extra rental for two years and score an extra $26,000, or $21,000 net. Need some advise? contact Eestates today 

The Best House in Cape Town - Sold

Indian booze billionaire buys himself many rooms with a view. Indian liquor baron and Formula One team owner has splashed out R60-million for a Cape Town mansion in which Hollywood star Nicolas Cage once slept on embroidered pillows.

The flamboyant 54-year-old chairman of United Breweries Group and Kingfisher Airlines - named after United Breweries's trademark Kingfisher beer - has an estimated fortune of $1.45-billion and was ranked the 44th richest person in India by Forbes.com in September.
The billionaire owns the Formula One team, Force India, and Indian Premier League cricket team, Royal Challengers Bangalore, coached by South African Ray Jennings. His South African assets include the Mabula Game Lodge and the ultra-luxurious Imbali Safari Lodge in the Kruger National Park, as well as a swanky Cape Town hotel. His taste for fast cars, yachts, race horses, jets, game lodges and general opulence is well documented.
And now, his latest luxury pad is a four-storey villa with a glass elevator and porcelain tiles imported from Italy at R2500/m². The mansion, which was advertised by local estate agents as "the best house in Cape Town", is perched on Nettleton Road and has sweeping views of Clifton beach.
The road boasts some of the most expensive real estate in South Africa. IT businessman Leo Baxter is demolishing a mansion he bought there for R32-million two years ago. Homes in the road have sold for R30 to R40 million this year. Mallya's new house was initially on the market for R80-million but its former owner, British screenwriter and film producer Mike Jefferies, settled for R60-million.
Denise Dogon, chief executive of the Dogon Group estate agency, which brokered the deal, declined to comment. "I really cannot comment on the buyer due to client confidentiality." She said R60-million was a record price for the Atlantic seaboard area.The mansion - which boasts a sauna, walk-in safe, gym, and garage space for four cars - has hosted movie stars, singers and royalty.
Prince Carl Philip of Sweden - the dashing son of King Carl Gustaf and Queen Silvia - stayed there during the 2010 Fifa World Cup, hosting lavish parties on its patio, which flanks a 25m-long infinity pool.
Singer George Michael lived there last year while preparing material for a new album and, six years ago, Cage and his third wife, former sushi waitress, Alice Kim, stayed there for nine weeks while he filmed Lord of War.
Brought to you by Eestates