Real Estate Investment in Namibia: Between the tallest mounds and the oldest desert and the only place to see rare black rhinos or elephants living in the desert, Namibia is truly one of the last true forests.
The country not only boasts the planet’s most diverse landscapes and abundance of natural resources, but it also enjoys Africa’s most peaceful and politically stable environment and the infrastructure to rival the most developed countries.
As a result, Namibia has become an international asset in recent years, with new developments and ambitious construction projects increasingly moving away from the seemingly barren desert plains.
Namibia is considered the strongest country in Africa, with a strong democracy that ensures political stability, sustained economic growth, modern infrastructure and services, and above all, the standard of living.
From a business perspective, Namibia is also an excellent entry point from where investors can start trading in the rest of Africa.
Excellent road and rail infrastructure connect the coastal cities of Windhoek and Swakopmund and neighboring countries of Walvis Bay, while regional routes are reliably served by various airlines connecting Namibia to Johannesburg’s most prominent regional hub. ‘
The Namibian property market is pleased and there are no signs that things will change soon. We still have a situation where there is a supply of demand in all sectors of the market, and this situation will continue while Namibia maintains a sustained economic growth rate of around five percent.
With similar banking and estate laws, Namibia is a familiar atmosphere for South African investors.
The appeal of the country’s property market is further evident by the fact that Namibia is part of the Southern African Customs Union and the Southern African Development Community, which play an important role in facilitating trade between countries.
Where to buy and how to get
Many of South Africa’s properties are for Swakopmund, the country’s premier coastal resort destination and a sought-after recreation center. He says the city has a wide variety of residential properties, ranging from small flats to townhouses and some impressive freestanding houses.
The capital city has a complex real estate infrastructure covering the entire spectrum of residential, commercial, and industrial products. The more popular residential areas are Klein Windhoek, Ludwigsdorf, Luxury Hill, and the upmarket suburbs of Osbach, where prices vary between $ 5 million and N $ 18 million.
These areas have excellent private schools, hospitals, and various shopping centers, which cater to the daily needs of the local people and foreigners. Windhoek is situated in a hilly area and many properties offer beautiful views over the city and the countryside. ‘The Namibian Dollar matches one South African rand for one.
Each real estate product starts at $ 1,2 million in large homes, with flats in large areas ranging from $ 20 million to $ 20 million.
Many new lifestyle estates have arisen on the outskirts of Windhoek. The new units, priced between $ 1,2 million and N $ 2,5 million, provide sound capital growth and return on investment.
‘There is also strong demand for livestock and game farms across the country, with high demand in the agricultural sector and significant growth in rising prices, Namibia’s strong, fast-growing tourism industry has provided many exciting investment opportunities for foreign investors have done.
The relatively high capital prices of real estate in Windhoek are five percent on investment for residential property in sports lodges and private reserves, and seven percent in commercial real estate.
However, it should be noted that we are facing a steady capital growth of about 20 percent per year on residential properties, which guarantees attractive investment opportunities.
How to take as a foreigner
Current law does not require any restrictions on foreign ownership of the real estate in local authorities, and many foreigners have purposes of leisure, investment, and corporate use, most notably in Windhoek and Swakopmund.
Foreigners require residence permission, but also, Namibian foreign residents and citizens are treated as having an equal status for the purchase and possession, and transmission of land or property.
The important exception is agricultural land: the Agricultural Land Reform Act prohibits foreign nationals from entering into any agreement on the right to purchase agricultural land in Namibia without written ministerial consent.
Know Changing market dynamics before doing Real Estate Investment in Namibia
One result of falling house prices is an increase in the property leasing market. As in any financial depression, people first sell their investment and vacation properties and, after the optimal window for selling is closed, the market is filled with such assets. Buyers now have the option to buy and choose a property instead of purchase with the hope of cutting home prices.
Along with tourism, the availability of services such as Airbnb, one of Namibia’s most successful regions, has opened up another window of opportunity for property owners. Instead of entering into long-term leases with tenants, owners provide their property for short-term accommodation for the holidays.
With this option of renting real estate, investing in real estate can still be attractive, allowing for all short-term holidays.
However, a change in the real estate market at artificially high house prices led to a change in the mindset of investors, where availability equals property demand. To be strong, they have to be more actively concerned with maintaining the property.
Falling house prices
The First National Bank of Namibia registered a 3.7% increase in average house price annually. Despite the decline in home price growth, year-over-year growth of 27.4% was recorded for Volume Index 3, which was mainly influenced by the purchase of low-income housing; Demand for real estate is still high in Namibia.
Falling house prices have reached a critical level. To induce investment in real estate, the Bank of Namibia first reviewed changes to loan-to-value regulations and now requires small deposits to purchase investment properties.
Bank of Namibia has also cut the repo rate by 25 basis points to prevent excessive real estate shares. Usually, the effect of such changes can be seen in the market within 12 months. However, experts suspect that these changes will have an impact on the real estate market.
