From seaside mansions and coastal forest gems to beautiful eco-estate bush abodes, the property market on the KZN North Coast is flourishing. Whether you’re relocating, buying your dream holiday home or looking for investment opportunities, the Ballito Umhlanga corridor is where you should be shopping. Stay tuned over the next week to find out more of these hidden gems.
Secure, modern farm-style living
There are very few things that make a parent as happy as seeing their child run free in the fresh air, playing outdoors and just ‘being kids’. Nowadays however, many people are sacrificing space for security and living in gated estates with small or sometimes no gardens.
The world is a busy, stressful place and children and adults alike are spending more time in front of screens than ever before. Gone are the days when families came home and spent time tending their gardens, playing with their pets and reconnecting with each other and their natural surroundings. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
According to the developers of Springvale Country Estate (situated in Sheffield, just outside Ballito on the KZN North Coast), more and more people want to go back to a ‘country’ lifestyle where they can have their own veggie gardens, chickens to lay eggs and spend time with their children and pets in their own back yard. Director of sales, Stuart Graham, says there’s a growing demand among buyers for ‘farm-style’ living on large plots, without sacrificing the security and amenities that come hand-in-hand with living in an estate.
‘The health implications of children spending too much time in front of screens and not enough outside, playing in the sand and climbing trees, are becoming more evident,’ he says.
Stuart refers to an article he recently read online, highlighting the importance of outdoor play for children to reduce the risk of stress and even mental illness as they get older. ‘The article showed studies have proved that children raised in more ‘rural’ environments, exposed to animals and even bacteria-laden soil, grow up to be healthier with more resilient immune systems.’
However, he says that doesn’t mean you have to pack up and move to a rural area far from civilisation. Nor does it mean giving up the first world security we’ve become accustomed to in gated estates.
Springvale is just one of a few developments in the country that offers large homestead plots (averaging 2600m² going up to 4800 m²), allowing owners to create a modern farm-style home with pets, surrounded by beautiful waterways, trees and indigenous buck and birdlife.
What sets Springvale apart from most developments, however, is the affordability factor. Prices start at R1.3m for 2200m² with the average piece of land selling for around R1.65m for 2600m².
A family-owned development, Stuart says he and his family are creating a place where they too would want to live and raise their children. ‘We’re focusing on the values we hold dear like space, water, animals, trees, security and freedom.’
With 121 free-standing, single-storey homes on nearly 58ha of land, Springvale is also moving away from the very ‘stringent’ rules often put in place in estates. Springvale is close enough to the hub of Ballito for residents to enjoy the ease and practicality of being close to schools, hospitals and shops, and offers the benefits and amenities of estate living such as a clubhouse, swimming pool and tennis courts.
‘Your home should be your sanctuary. The place you go to de-stress and reconnect with your family and natural surroundings . . . and a place where your children can get muddy, explore and enjoy being kids!’
Details: Springvale Country Estate:
springvalecountryestate.co.za; [email protected]; 087-094-1084.
