Gauteng’s property gradient three decades after the repeal of the Group Areas Act

Date
2021-06-30
Authors
Ballard, Richard
Namponya, Alfred
Tshangana, Alison
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Gauteng City-Region Obervatory
Abstract
In June 1991, the South African parliament repealed the Group Areas Act, the legislation that the apartheid state had used to drive urban segregation. To mark the three decade anniversary of this moment, this month’s map showcases remarkable analysis conducted by the Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa (CAHF) on property values across the three metros in Gauteng. It shows in broad terms the way in which historically-white suburbs continue to be the most financially exclusive parts of the city region. Each pie graph represents one Census subplace or suburb: the size of the circle reflects the total number of registered properties in that suburb while the coloured slices of the pie represent the number of properties in each market segment. Green and blue segments represent properties under R600 000, while red segments indicate properties over R1.2 million.
Description
In June 1991, the South African parliament repealed the Group Areas Act, the legislation that the apartheid state had used to drive urban segregation. To mark the three decade anniversary of this moment, this month’s map showcases remarkable analysis conducted by the Centre for Affordable Housing Finance in Africa (CAHF) on property values across the three metros in Gauteng. It shows in broad terms the way in which historically-white suburbs continue to be the most financially exclusive parts of the city region. Each pie graph represents one Census subplace or suburb: the size of the circle reflects the total number of registered properties in that suburb while the coloured slices of the pie represent the number of properties in each market segment. Green and blue segments represent properties under R600 000, while red segments indicate properties over R1.2 million.
Keywords
Group Areas Act, Segregation
Citation
Ballard, R. Namponya, A., and Tshangana, A. (2021) 'Gauteng's property gradient three decades after the repeal of the Group Areas Act' Gauteng City-Region Observatory, June 2021