Real Estate Investor Magazine Mozambique Real Estate Investor Magazine Mozambique 2014 | Page 20

MAPUTO MARKET

Such prices can be seen in the rentals
of both commercial and residential units
throughout Maputo with commercial
premises in the city centre of Baixe ranging
from US$28 p/m2 to over US$37.5 p/m2.
Apartments are renting for anywhere between
US$3,000 to US$6,500, with one bedroom
apartments selling from US$350,000 in the
new developments. Individual homes are
even, on a higher scale with the suburbs of
Sommerschield one and two achieving rentals
from US$4,000 to well over US$10,000 per
month.
For Maputo, specifically, these prices are
inclined to stay higher for the next two to
three years, while supply tries to catch up to
these levels of demand. Once achieved, the
market can expect a gradual cooling off from
a plateau of prices with a premium placed on
new apartment blocks and condominiums.
This will result in a decrease of pricing for all
older units to a more competitive price range.
An alarming aspect of the new growth rate
within the real estate sector, is the enormous
amount of new office and commercial space
being constructed. It was forecast that
Maputo only requires approximately 400,000
square metres of office space, whereas there
is already construction of around 900,000
square metres at present.
This must be a cautious area for investors
looking at the various areas of investment in
Maputo. It still remains to be seen what will
become of this mass availability in the future.
Triunfo, the northern coastline suburb of
Maputo, has seen much development taking
place in this once empty basin of low lying,
yet prime area of real estate. Much of this has
been as a result of the progress made through
construction of the circular ring road and
the much awaited rejuvenation of Marginal
Avenue which runs parallel to the ocean.
It was forecast that this will become the
‘new’ area of Maputo by providing more
space and a more modern design of homes
and apartments in a serene setting, compared
to the older and more densely populated
suburbs of the city of Maputo.
This extension of development and
construction will be seen into the area of
Marrecuene which will soon become widely
accessible on the full completion of the ring
road project, which consists of four lanes. This
shall be of interest to both local and foreign
investors still looking for land parcels which
are, within reason, adequately priced.
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Mozambique Real Estate Investor

One area of activity which has caused
much debate within the city of Maputo is
that of the Maputo-Catembe Bridge project.
This will entail connecting a bridge to the
Harbor of Maputo which connects the two
mainlands, in order to make both areas
more accessible to each other and alleviate
congestion within the city.
The project, with the tender awarded to
the China Roads and Bridges Corporation
(CRBC) at a total cost of US$725 million, is
already three years overdue without any form
of construction having taken place.
It is widely anticipated physical evidence
of construction will start taking shape in
2015, after the Mozambican government
has successfully and peacefully re-located
all residents previously situated within the
parameters of the proposed bridge site.
The city of Maputo, with it’s many projects
currently underway; from real estate to
construction and infrastructure, indicates a
changing of the guard from the once quiet
and subdued colonial city to a new, modern,
expanding and cosmopolitan environment in
which to conduct business.
This rapidly evolving city still has many
challenges to overcome, but it is one with
many opportunities for real estate investors
to find a range of diversified assets in which
to explore and reap the high yields on offer.

The demand for
available land,
residential and
commercial spaces
for operation far
exceeds supply in
terms of prices for
a high and overinflated real estate
market.”

RESOURCES
Propertymaputo.com
www.reimag.co.mz