Housing opportunities
Qualifying South African citizens living in Cape Town may be eligible for different housing opportunities in the city. Once you apply, we can advise you on what options are available that match your needs and financial status. Options include Breaking New Ground (BNG), Council rental units (CRU), site and service, social and affordable and GAP housing among others.
Basic qualifying criteria
GET ADVICE AND ASSISTANCE
Consult with your
nearest housing office for more details on the options below and the application process.
You must be registered on the Housing Needs Register to apply for an opportunity, regardless of which one it is.
Make sure your contact details are up-to-date on the
online portal.
The City follows all national regulations and legislations, and City housing allocation policies. No matter which option you apply for, you must meet certain basic criteria first. Each type of housing may have additional criteria you need to meet as well.
Applying for a housing subsidy
Before you can apply for a housing subsidy through the City of Cape Town, you have to meet the standard, national criteria, as follows:
National criteria:
- You have to be over the age of 18.
- You cannot own any other property or previously owned property.
- You must be married or living with a partner, or single with financial dependents (who are able to prove their dependency).
- If you are 60 years of age or older or if you are disabled you may apply as a single person.
- You have to be a South African citizen, or must have a permanent residence permit.
- You must be legally competent to sign a contract.
- You cannot apply if you receive a national government housing subsidy already or if you are married to someone who does.
You must be registered on the City’s Housing Needs Register and your details, including contact information must be up-to-date. If you fulfil all the criteria, you are eligible to apply for a housing opportunity with the City of Cape Town.
Find out how to register on the Housing Needs Register by following the City Connect link below.
Applying for a housing opportunity
Register and apply with us before doing anything else. Once you are on our Housing Needs Register, we can help you find something suitable to your needs, depending on what kind of housing is available, and when.
There are hundreds of thousands of registered individuals on the register and there is a high demand for housing. As opportunities are created, more qualifiers are added.
What we can offer applicants depends on differing criteria across the types of opportunities we provide, for instance:
-
Date of your application: The date of your application is the main principle of the allocation of housing. Due to the high demand, it is crucial that the City follows a fair and systematic process in the allocation of opportunities. While we try our best to provide housing opportunities to all those in need, the demand from residents is high. It might take a long time to get an opportunity due to the high demand.
-
Your personal situation: What we can offer you depends on your monthly household income (your income combined with that of your spouse/partner), your age, and whether you or a family member is disabled.
-
Availability of units (City rental units): City Rental opportunities allow applicants, in addition to their residential suburb, to note other areas of preference which are within the jurisdiction of the City of Cape Town.
To check your details and your application status, visit the
online portal.
HOUSING NEEDS REGISTER: waiting list
Housing applications may be quick to process, but the waiting period can take many years due to the high demand for state assisted housing opportunities.
Understanding Cape Town’s housing opportunities
We have
five main housing opportunities available. Each opportunity has specific qualifying criteria.
| BNG housing | Household income of between
R0 – R3 500 per month. These are units available to own. If a beneficiary wants to sell before the eight-year restrictive clause that applies in these instances, they need to apply for an exemption which will be reviewed and approved by the Western Cape Government.
Breaking New Ground (BNG) houses are provided through the
National Department of Human Settlements grant funding. The City of Cape Town spends almost all of the grant funding every year. The Breaking New Ground programme allocates free homes and full home-ownership for single qualifying families. Applicants selected will have to go through a subsidy application process as well, where it will be determined if they meet the
minimum criteria as stated in the subsidy section above.
|
|---|
|
GAP housing | Household income of between
R 1 850 – R 32 000. These are units available to rent or to buy, built by our partner agencies and enabled by the City. This could include social rental and affordable housing ownership options. Affordable housing is home ownership opportunities for persons in a certain income band.
If you earn too much to qualify for a BNG house but you don't have enough savings to pay the deposit, transfer fees or monthly payments on a property, we can help you fill this ‘gap.’ You can apply for the Western Cape Government administered
First Home Finance Subsidy Assistance (formerly known as FLISP) for help with a down payment, but you must qualify for a bond first.
|
|---|
rental sales programme
If you rent a free-standing or semi-detached Council house, you may be able to buy it through our
Rental Sales Programme. Ask about the programme at a
housing office near you.
Title deeds
A title deed is a legal document that states that you are the registered owner of a property. If you have been notified that you are a beneficiary of one of our houses, then you will receive a title deed.
Title deeds are handed over as we deliver housing to our beneficiary-owners, but we also have historic title deeds of older housing projects where a beneficiary has never collected their deed.
Over the last year we were faced with approximately 11 000 of these cases. We then launched a title deed delivery programme and managed to deliver more than 6 500 of these deeds with approximately 4 000 to go.
Many beneficiaries no longer reside in Cape Town or have moved to other parts of South Africa, which makes the tracking and tracing process very intricate and time-consuming.
If you are a beneficiary of a City or government home and have not received your title deed, contact us:
Telephone:
021 444 0333 (Monday to Friday, between 07:30 and 16:30)
Visit: Cape Town Civic Concourse Level Housing Kiosk
Email: title.deeds@capetown.gov.za
You will need to take the following documents with you when you collect your title deed:
- Your Identity Document (ID) book or card (it should be the green bar-coded ID)
- Your spouse’s ID book or card (if applicable)
- Your partner or beneficiary’s death certificate (if applicable)
- If you are the Next of Kin (NOK) collecting it on behalf of the beneficiary, you need to provide a Letter of Authority from the court proving that you are the legal NOK. In cases of death, you will need to provide the will of the deceased beneficiary indicating that the property was left to you.
- If a nominee is collecting on your behalf, an affidavit from the police station must be presented, granting permission for the collection of the title deed.
Title deeds will not be issued without all the required documents. You and your spouse or partner must come to the venue together if you are married in community of property and bring the required documents. Phone ahead to make sure you have what you need.
Deed-to-door
Where we are heading to next:
Stay up-to-date with the latest news and events.
write a will
A will is an important legal document, written by a homeowner with the help of a lawyer. It will ensure that your valuable assets are passed down to your children or grandchildren when you pass away. For more information, visit the
Western Cape Government website.
Apply or register for housing
Applications for social housing must be done directly with the relevant Social Housing Institution (SHI) that administers the particular social housing estate that you are interested in. The only requirement is that you must be registered on the City’s Housing Needs Register. Applicants apply to the relevant SHI, and attach proof of their application on the Housing Needs Register.
Please follow the links below for step-by-step instructions on how to complete these actions:
Sale agreement amendment
The City has brought an application in the Equality Court regarding certain sale agreements in respect of City housing units. These agreements were entered into before the establishment of the City of Cape Town Municipality in September 2000, and were entered into with married male beneficiaries in terms of a former housing allocation policy known as the ‘Housing Scheme Constructed by the Local Authority’.
The sale agreements did not reflect their female spouses as at the date of the allocation of the housing units as co-purchasers. In its application, the City seeks an order that in the case of housing units which have not been transferred, the sale agreements be amended to reflect both spouses as co-purchasers, in equal shares, of such housing units. The amended sale agreement proposed by the City will provide the co-purchasers with full and equal rights of occupation, use of and access to the housing unit.
You can
download the application papers, visit the
Parow Centre Housing Office or any of the housing offices listed below for more information.
Would you like to print this page?
print 