The biggest problem in the housing market at the moment is building cost. First time home buyers has to sit out waiting for cost to hopeful come down, only snowballing to make it even less affordable at a later stage. The result, the gap between the middle class and the rich is growing. Reading an article this morning in the news, first time home buyers have declined from 32% in the middle of 2005 to 16% in the second quarter of this year. The reasons for this is cost. One, with the new credit act it is very difficult for the middle income earner to qualify for a mortgage. Two, housing has become to expensive. When questioned, 67% of real estate agents claimed that qualification and affordability issues are becoming significant hurdles in the middle income bracket.
Adding to this problem there is a boom in the middle class community. In an article by Mariette le Roux publishes on News24, South Africa’s booming black middle class, been called the: ”Black Diamonds” are struggling with the same resistance.
The black middle class earns approximately an average of R7 000.00 per month and represents R180bn, 28% of the total South African spending. A report by the University of Cape Town’s Unilever Institute said that the “Black Diamonds” have grown by 30% in the last year alone to 2.6 million out of a population of 48 million south Africans.
Nearly half of these new “Black Diamonds” now live in areas previously only inhabited by whites. Approximately 12 000 families or 50 000 individuals move from the townships every month.
The problem that the Black Diamonds are faced with is that they make out 28% of South Africa’s spending, but they can not afford housing. We are faced with a middle class that might only become home owners through inheritance.
South Africa is not the only country to have gone through this problem, America and Australia has gone through similar problems in the past, and have overcome the problem to a large extent. The most noticeable difference between the construction market in South Africa and America is their method of construction.
America has move away from brick and mortar construction decades ago, why? Because they were faced with the same problems that we are faced with now. In the past labour has been a given, in South Africa and in America. When you think about it, labour in the past have resembled slave labour to a large extend, looking at the wages that builder paid their employees. Times have changed for the better, everyone is experiencing a life of better equality, but the habit forming creatures that we are, still tries to cling to “the old way of doing things”. Rather theying to adapt what we have always done, then to embrace the new.
Brick and mortar construction is very labour intensive, that is why America moved from brick and mortar to framed construction decades ago. A standard brick house takes approximately 6 months to build with 15 or more workers. A standard framed house 6 weeks with 4 laborers per day. Anyone that has seen an episode of Makeover home addition has noticed that Americans don’t build with bricks. In fact, if your crew is big enough you can build a complete house in 7 days, as seen on TV.
The first comment regarding framed construction normal is: ”but the climate in South Africa is to extreme for framed construction.” “Hello” America gets hurricanes and earthquakes.
America simply moved to a more suitable way of construction to facilitate in the economic changes of the day.
Australia and New Zeeland has now gone through the same housing problem. Already close to 50% of all the new houses build down under are constructed with a frame structure.
South Africa is now at that same crossroad. Change or the class difference in South Africa will grow to astronomical proportions.
In a free country, it should be every mans right to own a house.
I’ve been researching alternative construction methods for more that 3 years. Through my research I have found that framed construction and more recently lightweight steel frames houses is an excellent solution to the current building problem.
South Africa will wake up to this realization sooner or later, so it makes perfect sense to be the pioneers in this field by the time they do.
