GLOPRAGlobal Property Radar

South Africa house prices up 8.2% in year to May 2026

Statistics South Africa put annual residential price growth at 8.2% in May 2026, with the Western Cape at 11.2% and Gauteng at 5.5% over the same year.

The facts

  • National residential property prices rose +8.2% in the year to May 2026, up from a revised 8.1% in April, in the Residential Property Price Index that Statistics South Africa published on 8 October 2026.
  • The index stood at 128.0, on a base of December 2020 = 100, and rose 0.7% month on month.
  • The Western Cape carried the highest annual rate in the provincial table at 11.2% and contributed 4.7 percentage points of the national rate; Gauteng rose 5.5% and contributed 1.9 percentage points.
  • Among the metros, the City of Cape Town rose 11.5% and the City of Johannesburg 4.8%. The index for all metropolitan areas together rose 8.0%.
  • By segment, freehold properties rose 9.3%, resold properties 8.3% and sectional title properties 6.3%, while properties sold for the first time fell 0.3%.
  • The reference month is May 2026 and the release date is 8 October 2026, a gap of about four months.

What it means for your money

  • Entry costs more at the national level. Prices rose 8.2% nationally and 9.3% on freehold stock over the year to May 2026.
  • Where you buy changes that cost. The Western Cape ran at 11.2% and the City of Cape Town at 11.5%, against 5.5% in Gauteng.
  • Exit depends on the segment bought into. Resold properties rose 8.3% over the year, while properties sold for the first time fell 0.3%.
  • For an owner already holding South African property, the paper gain follows the title type: freehold at 9.3% against sectional title at 6.3%.

What to watch

  • The next edition covers June 2026 and is scheduled for 5 November 2026. The four-month lag means this index is not a reading of the market as it stands today.
  • Properties sold for the first time is the only segment in the national breakdown in negative territory, at -0.3% against 8.3% for resales.
  • The release publishes index levels, weights and percentage changes only, with no transaction counts, no rent levels and no price per square metre in rand.

Sources: Statistics South Africa, Residential Property Price Index, May 2026, published 8 October 2026 https://www.statssa.gov.za/publications/P0160/P0160May2026.pdf?x=1

Market data: Cape Town · South Africa