Property

The desert province with some of the most expensive properties in South Africa

Kirsten Minnaar • 1 August 2026

A new report shows that the Northern Cape has the second-most-expensive rental properties in South Africa, behind the Western Cape.

This was revealed in PayProp’s Rental Index report for Q1 2026, which outlines trends in the South African residential rental market and is compiled from PayProp’s transactional data.

The index revealed that after three quarters of deceleration, rental growth picked up again in the first quarter of 2026, rising 4.7%.

Average rent increased to R9,582, up R450 from the same quarter in 2025. However, rental market performance varied widely across provinces.

In the first quarter of 2026, the Free State emerged as the cheapest province in South Africa, with an average rent of R7,501.

Year-on-year, the province’s rental growth crashed to 0.6%, making it South Africa’s slowest growing province, after Mpumalanga.

The Western Cape, once again, emerged as South Africa’s most expensive province. In Q1 2026, the average rental price in this province surpassed R12,000.

After four quarters of slowing growth, the Western Cape saw its year-on-year growth climb to 7.4%. This brought the average rental up to R12,125. This is R840 higher than Q1 2025 and R231 higher than Q4 2025.

While the Western Cape’s dominance of the property market has become expected, what is more surprising is that the Northern Cape came in as the second most expensive.

During Q1 2026, the Northern Cape saw its average rental price increase to R10,821, surpassing major property hotspots such as Gauteng (R9,600) and KwaZulu-Natal (R9,585).

PayProp explained that 2025 was a turnaround year for the Northern Cape, with growth rising from 3.3% in Q1 to 7.6% in Q4.

“The province then started 2026 with another leap forward,” PayProp said. “Rental growth jumped to a massive 12.9% year on year, the highest recorded in any province since Q1 2025.”

In the first quarter of 2026, rental prices in the Northern Cape were up R1,240 year on year and R428 compared to the final quarter of 2025.

“Having broken the R10,000 barrier in Q2 2025, rents in the province could realistically pass R11,000 this year,” PayProp said.

The Northern Cape remains an affordable hotspot for buyers

R4.76 million four-bedroom house in Vanderkloof, Northern Cape

The Northern Cape’s rising rental costs come despite the province remaining one of South Africa’s most affordable property markets.

In 2025, the average property price in the province was around R935,806, with most sales falling between R400,000 and R1.5 million. Less than 2% of properties sold for more than R2 million.

This affordability is attracting buyers from Gauteng, KwaZulu-Natal and other parts of the country who are looking for cheaper homes and a quieter small-town lifestyle.

Seeff Country sales manager Jaco Badenhorst said branches across the province were seeing more buyers from Johannesburg, Pretoria, and KwaZulu-Natal.

The Northern Cape’s property market is also being supported by investment in mining, agriculture, and renewable energy.

Towns such as Kimberley, Upington, Kathu, and Kuruman are seeing demand from workers and contractors linked to the mining sector.

Large renewable energy projects, including those at Kenhardt and Redstone, are also creating jobs and boosting local economies. This is supporting demand for homes to buy and rental properties.

The province has also become attractive to buy-to-let investors, who can purchase properties at relatively low prices while achieving strong rental yields in mining and agricultural towns.

The Northern Cape’s property market is not limited to its larger towns. Smaller areas are attracting retirees, families, first-time buyers, and people looking to escape expensive cities.

In Upington, average house prices range from around R1 million to R2 million, while rentals range from R9,000 to R12,500. In Gariepdam, average house prices are closer to R550,000, with rentals around R4,000.

The Northern Cape also has a high proportion of freehold homes, with more than 80% of its housing stock being freehold.