eThekwini residential properties: Focus on C3 Transit Corridor and Durban Central

The performance of the residential property market has a direct impact on municipalities—with respect to rates revenue, spatial integration, affordable housing and city planning. In order to accurately plan, municipalities require tools to quantify and unpack the relative performance of the residential property market over time in particular areas of interest for public investment. This dashboard enables a detailed neighborhood-level analysis of the metro, with respect to number of properties by value (market segment) and transaction prices.

In addition to allowing you to narrow in on specific areas (by Census mainplace), the dashboard also provides a targeted view of the C3 transit corridor as well as Durban Central. This gives the city an opportunity to evaluate indirect and direct impact of infrastructure investment in these areas. The inclusion of data reaching back to 2015 allows you to compare property values from year to year in these areas and view the change in transaction prices that may be associated with public transport investment, for example.

Developed jointly by CAHF and the Research and Policy Advocacy Department (RAPA) at eThekwini Municipality, the dashboard is a new experiment in deeds data analysis and visualization. It is chiefly intended for use by local government officials involved in planning, human settlements, strategy, and research and data analysis, but is also valuable for other sector stakeholders. We welcome your feedback on the tool: alison@housingfinanceafrica.org

To view the full 2021 Citymark report on eThekwini’s residential property market, click here. A presentation introducing this dashboard and showing an example of its application is available here.

Data source: This dashboard utilises title deeds data as of 30 June 2021, obtained from Lightstone Pty Ltd, South Africa’s largest retailer of deeds registry and other data. The dashboard only covers properties which appear on the deeds registry (the formal market) – it does not include properties that are not formally registered on the deeds registry, as might be found in backyards or in informal settlements.