Cape Town - The Fancourt golf estate in George on the Garden Route announced its first residential release in over a decade, namely a new phase of vacant stands.
Known as "Noem Noem", the new phase consists of 45 vacant stands ranging in size from approximately 508m² to 1 135m² and priced from R1.2m.
The median price of freehold properties sold in Fancourt in 2017 (up to August) is R6.4m - an increase of almost 35% in total over the past five years.
According to dr Andrew Golding, chief executive of the Pam Golding Property (PGP) group, an indication of the estate's popularity is that nearly half the current home owners have owned their properties for 11 or more years.
Fancourt was originally launched in 1991 and is situated on 613 hectares incorporating about 420 existing homes. It has three Gary Player-designed championship golf courses, including The Links, which was ranked number one in SA in 2016 by Golf Digest SA. The estate also has a 5-star boutique hotel, a spa and leisure centre, restaurants, a business centre and offers a range of sports and recreational activities.
According to Stephen Murray, PGP area manager for George, all the vacant properties in the Oaklands and Cape Dutch precincts in Fancourt have been sold out. Although there are still some vacant erven available in the Links Ridge area and Montagu Ridge, these stands differ in size and position compared to Noem Noem.
He says the majority of home buyers in Fancourt acquire property for permanent residence - many of them being golf enthusiasts.
"There are also a number of families who reside on the estate with children attending either McKinlay Reid International School on the estate or Glenwood House private school, only about 15 minutes away. In some families on the estate the major breadwinners commute on business to major centres," said Murray.
* Sign up to Fin24's top news in your inbox: SUBSCRIBE TO FIN24 NEWSLETTER