Paul Stevens, CEO of Just Property, discusses on the province’s property comeback
Confidence is quietly returning to the KwaZulu-Natal coast, and this time it looks more grounded, more data-driven and more sustainable than it did during the last boom.
After several turbulent years, the latest development and sales figures for Durban and its surrounds show a province resetting itself around two powerful growth engines: the established North Coast nodes of Umhlanga and Ballito, and the fast-rising Outer West/Upper Highway corridor around Hillcrest and Westown.
As someone who has watched KZN’s property market through the difficult years of riots, floods and infrastructure worries, I see a very different story emerging now, one of resilience, renewed appetite and long-term opportunity rather than quick speculation.
North Coast: consolidation at the top
On the development side, the North Region, anchored by Umhlanga and Ballito, still commands the lion’s share of new building activity. According to building-plan approvals, this node accounted for about R2.0 billion in total value last year, making it the heavyweight among Durban’s sub-markets.
What has changed is the intensity and quality of demand, especially around Salt Rock. According to a recent article in BusinessTech, “Between March 2024 and February 2025, Salt Rock accounted for 47% of all property sales in the greater KwaDukuza NU region, leading the market.” The article continued: “While Ballito recorded the highest year-on-year growth over the past five years at 7%, Salt Rock outperformed it in the most recent year, achieving an average sales price of R4.06 million compared to Ballito’s R3.14 million, a 30% difference.”
In the third quarter of last year, around R458.4 million in plans passed in the North, easing back to about R367.7 million in Q4 – a quarter-on-quarter decline of roughly 22.1%. Rather than signalling a loss of confidence, this looks like consolidation after a very strong run, as developers and buyers absorb stock in premium nodes. Much of the current interest is focused on secure estates, where sectional-title units in well-managed schemes have consistently outperformed comparable properties outside estates, a clear “more value, less risk” preference from North Coast buyers.
For buyers, that consolidation can be good news. When a market moves from “fever pitch” to a more balanced rhythm, pricing becomes more realistic, deal quality improves and there is time to interrogate body corporates, levies, rental histories and maintenance plans before committing. In Umhlanga and Ballito, lifestyle demand remains exceptionally strong – as Neale Petersen wrote recently in Real Estate Investor, “With demand outpacing even the Western Cape in building completions (53.6% YoY rise vs 32%), developers are expanding estates like Lalela in Sheffield. Rental growth (+4.5%) and robust bond applications (+13%) confirm the North Coast’s future as South Africa’s estate capital.”
Our data also highlights a growing “value gap” within the broader Umhlanga node: some pockets still offer comparatively lower entry prices relative to their achievable rentals, creating a sweet spot for investors prepared to buy for income rather than pure capital growth. That is where working with experienced, data-driven agents makes a real difference.
Upper Highway: Westown’s ripple effect
If the North Coast is the established star, the Outer West/Upper Highway is the breakout performer.
Building-plan approvals tell a very clear story. In the Outer West (which includes Hillcrest and the emerging Westown node), approved values rose from about R209.9 million to R301.9 million in Q4 last year. That is a quarterly jump of roughly 43% in value, with the number of plans approved increasing by around 71.9%. In simple terms, more people are building, and they are building bigger.
A major catalyst is the Westown development in Shongweni, a long-term mixed-use project expected to unlock around R15 billion in new investment over the next 10 to 15 years. It is paired with roughly R30 billion in upgrades to the N2 and N3 logistics corridors, including key interchanges that improve access between Durban, the port, the North Coast and inland economic hubs. By March 2025, the first phase of Westown Square had opened to the public, and Baldwin’s Shongweni Eco Park, the first residential estate in the precinct, with 1,260 apartments planned, was officially launched, signalling that this catalytic pipeline is now moving from plans to built reality.
Those numbers translate directly into residential demand up the hill. Recent sales projections include:
- An estimated 739 transactions for Hillcrest at an average sale price of about R2,377,500, with price growth of 5.6% and a clear position as the high-volume beneficiary
- Kloof with roughly 148 sales at an average price of R1,550,000, a stabilising, family-oriented suburb offering larger freehold homes at accessible price points
- Gillitts as a smaller, premium niche with around 13 sales at an average of R3,100,000, focused on exclusive freehold stock
2025 investor commentary now repeatedly highlights both the North Coast and the Upper Highway/Westown corridor as priority nodes for redeploying capital into KZN, with auction platforms and institutional investors actively targeting these areas as “green shoots” in the national property cycle.
When you overlay those figures with the lifestyle story (good schools, greener surroundings, new retail and medical infrastructure and improved road access) it becomes clear why buyers who might once have looked only at Umhlanga are now including Hillcrest, Kloof and surrounds on their shortlist.
What this means for buyers and investors this summer
If you are reading this from a home or rental in Umhlanga, Ballito or Salt Rock, you are sitting in the middle of one of South Africa’s most interesting property stories.
For coastal buyers, the North Coast remains a strong choice if you are seeking a lock-up-and-go lifestyle with excellent amenities, established estates and strong medium-term rental demand. The data shows that development here is maturing, and that is when some of the best long-term purchases are made, particularly in well-managed complexes where rentals and levies are in balance.
For families and semigrants who want space, schools and easier access to both Durban and the North Coast, the Upper Highway deserves serious attention. Hillcrest’s high transaction volumes and steady price growth, along with the premium pockets in Kloof and Gillitts, suggest a market that is still relatively early in its growth cycle compared to Umhlanga’s beachfront.
What to look for
Investors should keep an eye out for three things: where the infrastructure spend is going, where private capital is clustering and where live-ability is improving fastest. In KZN, the Outer West ticks all three, while the North Coast continues to offer the brand power and rental depth that many buyers want from a coastal asset.
At Just Property, we talk about “more opportunity, less uncertainty”. In KZN that means using hard numbers to separate sentiment from substance. It means understanding not just which areas are fashionable this summer, but which ones are backed by infrastructure, jobs and real end-user demand. Against the backdrop of the available data, my advice is to focus less on trying to time the absolute bottom and more on choosing the right nodes, estates and price points within a province that is clearly back on the national radar.
KZN has been through a tough chapter, but the combination of private investment, public infrastructure upgrades and persistent lifestyle appeal is reshaping its coastal and near-coastal markets. For buyers and investors willing to do their homework and work with an experienced property professional, the province is once again offering exactly what so many South Africans are looking for: more coastal living, more long-term value creation and less uncertainty about the fundamentals that sit behind their next property decision.
