Townships in South Africa are generally associated with poverty, low cost housing or make-do housing, meaning shacks. The expression "Shanty Town" is used for informal settlements and impoverished living areas.
A shanty town also called a squatter settlement is a slum settlement, sometimes illegal or unauthorized, where the houses are made of plywood, corrugated iron,
sheets of plastic, and cardboard boxes. Shanty towns, which are usually
built on the periphery of cities, often do not have proper sanitation,
water supply or aqueduct, electricity or telephone services.
And nobody who owns a little bit, has a little bit and still yearns for a little bit more in life, than he or she has right now, wants to live next to a "Shanty Town" in South Africa.
When buying a property in South Africa buyers are strongly influenced by the future development potential of the area surrounding the property like everywhere else, but here in South Africa special attention is paid to the possibility, that existing townships and informal settlements in the area might spread out and shanty towns might develop in the vicinity of the property on sale.
If this possibility exists the property in question is much more difficult to sell and looses market value.
The preconceived idea of a shanty town is not a good one!
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| A cool modern retro crib in Mdantsane |
Shanty towns are mostly found in developing nations, or partially developed nations with unequal distribution of wealth. In extreme cases, shanty towns have populations approaching millions. According to the Wikipedia as of 2005, one billion people, one-seventh of the world's population, live in shanty towns.
This might be true but as always there is the other side of the medallion. And until you turn the medallion around you don't see it.
In Mdantsane you can find amazing modern upmarket houses, that the outside spectator would never associate with the classical, traditional definition of a township house.
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| NO more Shanty Town - An upmarket property in Mdanstane |
The suburbs NU 9 and NU 17 in Mdantsane are the home of stylish modern luxury cribs like the mansion in the pictures, that is build in a modern retro style. The architecture of this double storey building incorporates a lot of glass and steel elements.
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| A double storey upmarket property in Mdantsane |
We have been working on a couple of articles, which we would like to develop into an ongoing series "Mdantsane Cribs". We feel honored, that we have been invited by many families into their home and that they have shared their intimate living space and a meal with us for a couple of hours. This has given us an idea how beautiful, creative and diverse the Mdantsane homes are on the inside.
How much HOME they are!
No matter if the home we visited, was a shack, a middle class house or a small palace like the one in the images - we have seen amazing interiors, that have left us speechless. Fascination lies in the creativity used to create beauty and how much you make out of something.
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| Mdantsane Property With A Malibu Setting |
The following facts might also surprise you. Houses in NU 17 fully fenced with three bedrooms, two bathrooms, one lounge and kitchen fetch up to 550.000 Rand at present. These are normal houses, that are not the embodiment of luxury and extravagance. Just simple normal houses - like this one.
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| Property on Sale by Xoliswa Tini Properties in NU 17 in Mdantsane for 550.000 Rand |
Xoliswa Tini Properties is another South African success story. Xoliswa Tini was one of the first black ladies to enter the property market in East London and to turn her business into a financial success. She was one of the first property agents to market the Mdantsane properties. Xoliswa Tini Properties just celebrated 10 years in business in June 2013.
Xoliswa said that it has not all been plain sailing during the past 10
years but she describes her business with the following metaphor : "We are like that
little duck on the water. In sight is a calm duck swimming but unseen
under the water the duck is paddling away."
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| Palm Trees Holding The Sun A Captive |
Back to the modern retro crib of our today's article. The inside is as stylish as the outside.
A predominantly white interior with some furniture pieces in the accents colors mint green and burned orange is soothing and calming to the eye. No furniture overload here.
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| Contemporary interior design in an upmarket house in Mdantsane |
Clean simple lines and open plan living dominate.
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| The bar area like the whole house has a retro feel. |
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| Palm tree integrated into the foyer |
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| The Dining Room Area tucked away between pillars |
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| The TV lounge, black leather and white again |
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| A Guest Room |
