Caption: Good News for Overberg Rentals
Ciska de Vries, short-let rental agent for Seeff Hermanus said they are already about 85% booked out for December and January. “This year has been a surprise with bookings in Hermanus tripling, some homes have even quadrupled in booking conversions,” she added.
She said further that guests have more downtime with extended school holidays and lockdown periods and guests have been eager for mini breakaways. 90% of bookings are local South Africans with only about 10% international, mostly from Europe and a few from the US.
Prices have remained fairly flat with a slight decrease in some rates. Rates are down by about 20% from what they should have been if there was no pandemic, hence the rate for a three-bedroomed house is around R2,500/night and for a luxury 6-8 bedroomed villa about R12,500/night max.
Weekend bookings also remain popular, the property group said. Month-to-month rentals are also booming in Hermanus due to the pandemic as people look to escape the confines of their city homes. Rentals range from R15,000/month for a smaller home to as much as R35,000 for bigger homes.
Bookings are coming from Joburg, Pretoria and even KZN, often at short notice as people want to quickly get away before the restrictions, Seeff’s experts said.
