AbstractsLaw & Legal Studies

Housing preferences of residents in Stellenbosch, South Africa.  – An application of the Hedonic Price Model

by Lin Shi




Institution: Stellenbosch University
Department: Consumer Science
Degree: MSc (Consumer Science
Year: 2005
Keywords: Consumer science; House buying  – South Africa  – Stellenbosch; Housing surveys  – South Africa  – Stellenbosch; Housing  – Research  – South Africa  – Stellenbosch; Home ownership  – South Africa  – Stellenbosch
Record ID: 1427031
Full text PDF: http://hdl.handle.net/10019.1/2704


Abstract

The issue of housing choice and preferences has been and still is the subject of much academic attention from researchers in many different disciplines. Stellenbosch, the oldest town in South Africa second to Cape Town, is undoubtedly the most scenic and historically well-preserved town in Southern Africa. With this plurality of attractive features, the housing market in Stellenbosch has become one of the most active and expensive housing markets in South Africa. In this specifically booming housing market, it is indispensable to conduct a housing preference and priorities study to determine residents’ tastes and preferences, in order to help those concerned, residents, real estate agents or people related to housing, to make better housing decision. At the same time, considering the affluent housing market in Stellenbosch, sellers and real estate agents are facing the problem of appraising the actual market value of houses. There is an apparent lack of a normative method to evaluate houses, and it is noteworthy that assessments almost always depend on the subjective experience of sellers and real estate agents.