PROPERTY NEWS - The first quarter of 2025 produced a mixed bag of results. While the volume of sales decreased overall, house prices still strengthened slightly. 

Both seasonal trends and broader economic factors play contributing roles in this quarter’s results.

Referring to national deeds office information, in terms of units sold, the South African market is down by roughly 8%. 

This is not necessarily cause for concern and can be attributed to a few factors.

“Firstly, the timing of the annual National Budget Speech often introduces a degree of uncertainty into the market, as potential buyers adopt a cautious “wait and see” approach in anticipation of changes to taxes, subsidies, or economic policy. In Q1 2025, this effect was compounded by ongoing geopolitical tensions and global economic instability, which influenced inflation and overall consumer confidence,” explains Adrian Goslett, Regional Director and CEO of RE/MAX of Southern Africa.

Additionally, Goslett highlights that seasonal trends have historically contributed to lower transaction volumes in the first quarter. 

“January is a shorter working month due to the holiday period, and December typically includes a closure of the Deeds Office, which causes a backlog in property registrations and delays in processing. These cyclical administrative slowdowns and reduced operational days mean that Q1 is often the quietest quarter for property transfers,” he states.

Despite this, the RE/MAX SA network’s registered sales grew by 6.93% in Q1 2025, while the brand’s reported sales grew by a staggering 10.51%. The average days until marked as sold on remax.co.za for Q1 2025 was just 17.1 days. 

“These results demonstrate the strength of our brand and the hard work of our network, especially in a market that is showing signs of overall decline,” says Goslett.

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