|
South Africa to stop land ownership by foreigners
A South African official panel has recommended a moratorium on foreigners buying or selling land. The era when Britons were free to acquire farms and homes in South Africa is drawing to a close.
This freeze would apply to every category of land, ranging from housing and farms to private game parks and industrial sites. It could also be followed by new laws banning foreigners from buying freehold property and restricting them to 99-year leases.
Foreigners are blamed for driving up prices and making housing unaffordable for many South Africans, so President Thabo Mbeki's government appointed a 10- member panel to examine the problem. The panel's report proposes a moratorium on the purchase and sale of South African land to non-citizens be imposed with immediate effect. This ban will allow the government to conduct a "land audit" and establish the extent of foreign ownership.
The moratorium would apply until new property laws are passed, and these may exclude foreigners from freehold ownership altogether. The panel's recommendations are not binding, although Mbeki has indicated that he favours restricting foreign ownership. There is no indication of when any moratorium might come into effect, or how long it might last before new property laws are introduced.
Hundreds of thousands of Britons live in South Africa. And many also hold South African citizenship and would not be banned from buying freehold. However, the fate of long-term expatriates with permanent residency status is unclear. The report says they should receive "favourable treatment" - but fails to specify what this might mean. Any bar on foreigners owning freehold would not apply to existing owners. But if the government imposed a moratorium, they would be prevented from selling their properties - including private houses - for the duration of the freeze. Estate agents criticised these "astounding" proposals, saying they would deter investment and damage the country's booming property market.
|
