Supplied by TUHF
Opportunities for regeneration and densification in South Africa’s inner-cities and townships remain central to sustainable urbanisation and economic inclusion. With this in mind and to coincide with Youth Month, TUHF and uMaStandi sponsored the South African Property Investors Network (SAPIN) Youth event, aimed at engaging with young people to provide them with an introductory framework on becoming property investors and entrepreneurs.
The event, held at the Soweto Theatre on 11 June, was aimed at breaking the cycle of township poverty. Daniel Kazadi, property entrepreneur, SAPIN Youth Leader and event host, believes property and rental accommodation hold the potential to create employment and income for many young people who are struggling to carve out career paths in the formal sector.
“The mission of this event was to demonstrate to young people that there is hope for them in real estate. By taking control of the course of their lives and building the skills they need to become property owners, young people can grow sustainable income streams and their own property/investment businesses,” says Kazadi.
To lay the foundation, a broad line-up of industry experts took attendees through the basics of financial literacy, entrepreneurship and business administration, property law and contracts, opportunities as both investors and letting agents, as well as the characteristics of a high-performing property portfolio.
Simnikiwe Ntyantya, Credit Analyst at TUHF21 says most young people think the idea of becoming property owners or landlords is out of their reach, but it is possible to start small.
“The key is to be innovative. There are opportunities created through urban regeneration and densification. TUHF21 is focused on developing new solutions based on relevant and practical research to help young investors get a foothold in the property market. Through uMaStandi our aim is to attract new investors in township markets to take advantage of these dynamics and build sustainable wealth,” says Ntyantya.
uMaStandi is a lending programme that aims to deliver inclusive impact and change young people’s lives. “These are not easy markets to understand at first, but as we spread skills and knowledge through events like these, we will be able to scale up across South Africa and ensure that urban management and regeneration is driven through collaboration with communities and local government,” adds Ntyantya.
uMaStandi’s target market is entrepreneurs who provide accommodation in townships – a niche of the property market neglected by traditional commercial finance sector players. “uMaStandi uses the power of commercial mortgage finance to assist property entrepreneurs to increase the value of the properties and earn an income uses the property as equity to fund a rental enterprise, with the construction then being professional designed and built to meet all required planning permissions. We guide entrepreneurs in building multi let rental units within the regulatory requirements and provide quality affordable rental units. Our goal is to grow this product rapidly in all major townships across South Africa, sustainably,” explains Ntyantya.
The Youth event in Soweto was designed to share basic knowledge to spur greater interest in property as an investment, while also outlining resources for specialised skills that can step in as necessary while young people build a property portfolio. “We don’t just want to show that there are ways to make money from property as a young South African. We need to show how young investors can extract maximum value from their portfolio so that their business is sustainable and can build inter-generational wealth,” says Kazadi.
Other SAPIN corporate partners and sponsors to this event included Absa, Bolt, Ooba Home Loans, and Tile Africa.
