Impact of Gautrain stations on property prices and sales activity in the City of Johannesburg between 2006 and 2015

Abstract

The core objective of this study was to analyse the impact of three Gautrain stations on real estate in the City of Johannesburg, looking specifically at how the Sandton, Rosebank and Midrand stations affected property prices and sales activity within 3 km of the stations between 2006 and 2015. This time period represented a temporal cross-section of the three fundamental stages of the Gautrain implementation, namely construction, commencement of operation and full operation. International literature is rich in documenting the relationship between transport infrastructure, real estate and property, although local studies are lacking, and in recent years the City of Johannesburg has recognised the Gautrain station locations as catalysts for local development, prioritising transit-orientated development as a way of promoting compact mixed-use walkable city environments. This formed the underlying motivation for conducting the study. It was predicted that the nature and impact of Gautrain-related property development and investment would vary based on its location. The research methodology relied on using GIS to apply advanced spatial analysis of the deeds database as the basis for measuring property prices and sales activity over the past ten years around the three Gautrain stations. The results of the study varied per station, indicating that closer proximity to a Gautrain station does not necessarily assure increased property value. This research is valuable for Gauteng local government in terms of urban planning, budgeting and municipal infrastructure development and in helping to inform the Gautrain Management Agency’s plans to extend the services of the Gautrain.

Keywords: Gautrain, real estate, property price, sales activity, deeds data, transit-orientated development