A CEO’s Viewpoint: How stability and confidence are reshaping SA’s Property Cycle

• Economic stability is lifting sentiment, driving renewed leasing activity and strengthening performance across high-quality, resilient property assets.
• Disciplined capital management and energy-reliable, well-located assets are anchoring long-term sector resilience.
• Confidence is shaping investment behaviour again, supporting broader economic momentum and measured recovery.

Stability and Confidence: Signals of a shifting property cycle

‍Confidence is slowly but clearly returning to South Africa’s economy. While the broader environment continues to stabilise, several pressures that defined recent years are easing. Inflation remains within target, borrowing costs are softening, and business and consumer sentiment are improving.

According to Redefine Properties CEO Andrew König, South Africa’s exit from the FATF grey list and an improving fiscal outlook have added meaningful support to this shift. These incremental gains are translating into a modest but steady rise in GDP growth, building firmer foundations for recovery.

‍

König notes that “small but steady improvements are laying firmer foundations for recovery, and the effects are now visible in the performance of the property sector.”

‍

Momentum returns but where fundamentals are strongest

‍The property market is beginning to show renewed momentum. Leasing volumes are strengthening, tenants are approaching renewals with greater certainty, and developers after a cautious period are beginning to test new opportunities.

As König explains, property moves in step with the broader economic cycle, and that rhythm is now becoming more pronounced.

But recovery is selective.

‍

‍“Stabilisation isn’t lifting every part of the market equally. Activity is concentrating around well-located, energy-resilient and professionally managed assets,” König says.

‍

Quality is the defining differentiator in this cycle.

• Industrial assets linked to logistics remain the strongest performers.
• Retail tenants are consolidating into high-performing centres.
• Office leasing is stabilising primarily in modern, sustainable, well-adapted buildings.

These trends mirror Redefine’s own performance, reflected in its 93.5% portfolio occupancy and a 7.8% rise in distributable income to R3.6 billion, evidence that fundamentals are regaining authority over speculation.

Strengthening momentum in these areas is feeding back into the broader economy. Businesses are reinvesting in functional space, construction activity is picking up, and stability is beginning to rebuild trust.

Discipline: The engine behind sector resilience

‍König emphasises that resilience across the property sector has been earned through discipline rather than favourable cycles. The past few years have required a tighter focus on core controllables—capital allocation, debt levels, asset quality and operational reliability, especially energy resilience.

‍

“This discipline is paying off. It’s creating a base of stability from which the next phase of growth can emerge,” he explains.

‍

In practice, this discipline has translated into strong liquidity positions, sustained tenant retention and improving operational margins across leading portfolios. These are not statistics of aggressive expansion, they are proof of consistency.

This resilience also plays a vital economic role. A strong, well-capitalised property sector underpins business continuity, supports employment and enables investment in infrastructure. When discipline is shared across the industry, stability becomes a collective strength rather than a private accomplishment.

Confidence: From sentiment to action

‍Perhaps the most encouraging shift is how confidence is influencing decisions. Businesses are planning further ahead. Investors are re-engaging selectively. Development conversations, once paused, are returning with a renewed sense of possibility.

‍

König remarks that “confidence is no longer just sentiment; it is beginning to shape behaviour and investment.”

‍

Global case studies reinforce this pattern. London’s Canary Wharf, Sydney’s Barangaroo and Singapore’s Marina Bay all demonstrate how long-term, coordinated reinvestment, rooted in confidence can transform entire economic precincts.

In South Africa, confidence is most visible in nodes where fundamentals remain consistently strong:

• In Cape Town, Brackengate 2 and Kenilworth Centre continue to attract durable demand.
• In Johannesburg, assets such as Rosebank Link and Centurion Mall maintain firm occupancy and stable trading performance.

These resilient nodes are anchoring recovery and reinforcing investor belief that value remains achievable.

Where stability meets momentum

‍König’s central message is clear: measured confidence, underpinned by resilient assets and disciplined investment, is beginning to power recovery across South Africa’s property sector.

A strong, investable property market multiplies benefits across the economy, creating the spaces where businesses operate, supporting employment, attracting long-term capital and signalling that South Africa remains an environment where opportunity can take root.

Recovery begins when stability meets confidence. From that point, momentum builds and with it, the potential for lasting value creation.

‍