The 48-ha Newinbosch mixed-use development will add 1 320 middle-class dwellings to housing stock in Stellenbosch, in the Western Cape, over the next four to six years.

Newinbosch is being developed as a greenfield project on the former Cloetesdal wine farm, across the road from the Welgevonden estate.

Property developer Similan is responsible for the project, located three kilometers from the town centre, along with development partner Raubex Building, which is also the main contractor.

Similan development manager Pieter du Toit says Newinbosch will fill a much-needed housing gap in Stellenbosch, with a high percentage of the university town’s middle-class work force currently commuting to Stellenbosch owing to the lack of more affordable residential opportunities.

The 660 apartments and 660 houses and simplexes will be constructed at roughly 200 units a year, depending on market demand.

The current target is for the first people to move in at the end of the year, says Du Toit.

The development will not only feature housing, but also an array of amenities, including a 7 500 m2 shopping centre, local eatery, dog park, urban farm, church, amphitheatre, swimming pool, skatepark, gym, multipurpose sports court, boules courts, cricket nets, a dam, a creche, primary school, high school, fibre, and cycling and running routes.

Raubex Building CEO Barend Badenhorst says the multibillion-rand project forms part of a diversification programme for his company, as it continues to expand its footprint to the south of the country.

The construction company has, for example, completed 2 400 student rooms at the University of the Western Cape, and is busy building 171 apartments in Kuils River – the latter also in partnership with Similan, with iGrow responsible for sales.

Range of Units
Around 40 units in Newinbosch’s first phase have already been sold (off plan).

The starting price for an apartment will be just under R800 000 (to be released in the third quarter), simplexes will sell from below R900 000 and house prices range from R1.8-million to just over R4-million.

The units on offer include apartments; simplexes; townhouses; courtyard units situated in private cul-de-sacs with parks, built to accommodate families with children and with the option of an additional granny flat; as well as freestanding houses.

The simplex is an interesting new housing unit at Newinbosch. Similan opted to add these units, says Du Toit, in an effort to ensure the development remains affordable for its target market.

A simplex unit, priced from R870 000, can be purchased with the minimal finishes, with the owner then able to add to these finishes as their income grows. 

However, in order to ensure that these two-bedroom, one bathroom units do not become too expensive too quickly, the growth in the selling price will be fixed at yearly consumer or building inflation, for a period of eight years.

These units will be reserved for first-time home owners for a limited period after going to market.

Newinbosch also has a clear target to be as environment-friendly as possible, adds Du Toit.

The development is pursuing a five-star green rating for its events venue; residential Edge certification; sustainable precinct certification; and net-zero ecology certification from the Green Building Council South Africa.

Each home will have a photovoltaic geyser, while stormwater and grey water (from the apartments) will also be used for irrigation.

Similan has also issued a request for proposal for a utility manager to ensure the development can withstand two loadshedding cycles a day.