Four Out of Five Flats Fail to Sell Within Six Months, Zoopla Data Shows

Our take

While this data comes from the UK market, it carries a clear warning for South African property stakeholders — particularly in Cape Town's Atlantic Seaboard and City Bowl, Johannesburg's Sandton and Rosebank, and Durban's beachfront, where sectional title apartments dominate both the buy-to-let and first-time-buyer segments. South Africa's sectional title environment has its own version of these headwinds: rising body corporate levies, deferred maintenance backlogs, and load-shedding-related infrastructure costs are all squeezing affordability and resale appeal. Buyers are increasingly asking hard questions about special levies and reserve funds before signing an offer to purchase. For sellers of sectional title units, the lesson is practical: price realistically, ensure levy accounts are up to date, and have your financials — including the body corporate's reserve fund statements — ready for due diligence. For buyers, factor in the full cost of ownership beyond the bond repayment. For landlords, strong rental yields may still justify holding, but exit strategies deserve a fresh look. Agents should be preparing clients for longer selling timelines in this segment.