Real Estate Investor Magazine South Africa May 2016 | Page 42

LEGAL

The Land Expropriation Bill
What does it mean for Property-Investors?
BY JONATHAN S SMITH

T

he recent passing of the Expropriation Bill
by our National Assembly on Tuesday, 23
February, 2016 has contributed towards the
political and economic uncertainty that has intensified
the concerns of local and international investors as well
as rating agencies vis-à-vis investment in South Africa.
Unless you are an investor of a speculative nature,
you should always require as much certainty of a
guaranteed return as possible when losing money to
an investment opportunity for any length of time. For
this reason, asset-backed investments – those which
can rely upon the sustained value of an asset, such as
fixed property – are the most attractive investments
available.
So it is when the certainty within an investment –
such as investment in fixed property – is diminished
40

MAY 2016 SA Real Estate Investor

that equity- and debt- providers become extremely
nervous and do all they can to divert their available
r