The oobarometer price index revealed that the average house price rose 6.8% year-on-year in June to R837 599 from R784 427 a year earlier.

“House prices are continuing to increase, although at a slower pace than in the past few months,” says Saul Geffen at ooba. “We have seen a sharp recovery in house prices for the first half of this year with three months of double digit year-on-year house price growth between February and May.”

Meanwhile, the growth in the average price among first time buyers remains strong, with year-on-year growth of 12.1% in June.

According to other indicators tracked by ooba, the average approved bond size increased 14.3% year on year in June to R695 381, compared with R608 316 a year earlier. The average deposit as a percentage of price fell 24.4% year-on-year to R142 218, equivalent to an average deposit of 17.0% of the price.

“We are seeing a continued easing in lending criteria, which is good news for potential home buyers and the property market in general.”

The average decline ratio increased marginally in June, up 1.3% year-on-year to 48.8% from 47.5% a year earlier, due to the higher proportion of 100% loans in June. However, on a month-on-month basis the decline ratio fell 4.1% to 48.8% from 52.9% in May.

The ratio of applications declined by one lender but approved by another increased 7.5% year on year to 24.8%.

“This is good news for home buyers, as it indicates a higher probability of a loan being approved by another bank, even if initially declined. It also demonstrates the importance of shopping around in securing home loans.

“General sentiment has no doubt been enhanced by the successful hosting of the World Cup. Overall, the signs remain positive for the housing market, although we expect price growth to continue at a slightly slower pace in the second half of the year.”