Our book recommendation for this month is Buy Your First Home: South Africa’s Ultimate Property Guide for Newbies (NB Publishers, 2023), by Zamantungwa Khumalo.
As we celebrate Women’s Month in South Africa, we are excited to shine a light on this powerhouse in the property investment landscape. Her journey in property investing has its roots in her strength and resilience as a female entrepreneur. She drew inspiration from her mother and aunt, who overcame barriers to reach success.
She also worked closely with fellow successful women in bringing her book to life. Buy Your First Home: South Africa’s Ultimate Property Guide for Newbies, published in 2023, can be purchased at Takelaot, Exclusive Books, or directly through the book’s publisher, NB Publishers. She is a role model in the property space with her practical beginner’s guide to property investment.
This book recommendation for property investors is ideal for novice and seasoned property investors alike, despite the ‘newbies’ the title suggests. Zamantungwa began her journey from humble beginnings and became successful in property investing due to her grit, determination, and belief in herself.
The origin of “Buy Your First Home”
The book was inspired by a viral Twitter thread where she shared her curiosity about buying a home. The thread was so popular and got so much engagement that Zamantungwa realised that she could incorporate her property investment experiences into a book. The book evolved into an informative and easy-to-follow guide that truly resonates with those looking to invest or gain more knowledge as a modern property investor in South Africa.
“This book started from a tweet I was tagged on about two years ago. The tweet asked: ‘For all under 30s who already have property, what advice would you give to those of us who want to get on the property ladder?’ My response became a thread of tweets, with tips and tools for getting on the ladder. I shared my property journey and some of my frustrations and wins along the way. The thread went viral, and I woke up the following day with my direct messages (DMs) flooded with questions about property and with people asking for property advice.” (Buy Your First Home: South Africa’s Ultimate Property Guide for Newbies: p. 17).
The author’s background
Zamantungwa Khumalo is a well-known media specialist, content creator, and property entrepreneur who bought her first two properties for her 27th birthday. She hosted The Private Property Podcast and founded inspiring platforms like All Things Property SA and My Money Date.
Her property investment path has deep roots in South Africa. Zamantungwa grew up in a township. She learned to navigate the world of property from a young age. Her family eventually built a home from scratch. Emerging from humble beginnings and limited resources meant she had to overcome the odds, but she did it!
We honour all women and particularly property investors and entrepreneurs this Women’s Month at IGrow Wealth Investments. And Zamantungwa is worth taking note of as a pioneer in the South African property world. At IGrow, our goal has always been to bring property investment to ordinary South Africans and Zamantungwa is someone helping others achieve this.
Why ‘Buy Your First Home’ is a must-read
This book recommendation is a true gem. It’s authentic, has practical steps any investor can use, and is a celebration of female property investors making an impact. From a viral tweet to the well-researched pages of her book, Zamantungwa has created a guide for anyone looking to enter into property investment.
It even suits IGrow property portfolio holders looking for information on handy property investment-related topics. As Jacques Fouché, our founder and CEO, likes to say:
What will you get from reading ‘Buy Your First Home’?
1. Access to practical local advice
Zamantungwa was frustrated by the shortage of accessible information in regards to South African property investing advice. She decided to write a book that answered this need.
2. The power of Zamantungwa’s personalised storytelling
As mentioned, Buy Your First Home came about after Zamantungwa’s Twitter thread resonated with many South Africans and went viral. This shows how her relatable advice can make a meaningful impact and contribute to her fellow South Africans, who want to break into property investment but have felt intimidated or hesitant to start.
3. This recommended read for property investors covers the whole property investment journey in detail
Buy Your First Home covers topics like assessing your situation: renting vs. buying, home loans and joint home loans, off-plan purchases, affordability, house hunting, stokvels and group investing, as well as the importance of Wills and Estate planning.
4. It helps you feel empowered through reliable property investment knowledge
Zamantungwa’s property journey from initial uncertainty to owning a multi-property portfolio, starting at age 26, is an authentic, lived experience of a South African woman taking the property investment world by storm.
Chapter highlights and key takeaways
Assessing your situation: renting vs. buying
In this chapter, Zamantungwa examines the debate that often arises: is it best to rent or buy your own home? She notes that renting can be a good short-term option if you are career-focused or want to save towards a future property investment. Zamantungwa highlights that buying a buy-to-let property helps you create equity in your properties over time, and monthly payments towards this investment are worthwhile for wealth creation long-term.
Zamantungwa’s thought process aligns with iGrow’s philosophy. We recommend you rent your own home at first while buying investment properties. The big difference is that the interest rate portion of an investment property’s bond is tax-deductible. When you are paying off your own private residence’s bond, this is not the case.
For an IGrow client, this may mean buying your rental property while still renting your own home. The rental income from your buy-to-let property will cover your home loan repayments and cover ownership costs. In the meantime, you will be building solid equity as your property increases in value.
Home Loans and Affordability
In Buy Your First Home, Zamantungwa explains the home loan process in detail, making it easy to understand. She helps readers get to grips with how to calculate affordability levels before the home loan application process. The importance of getting pre-approval is highlighted, as well as comparing interest rates on multiple home loan offers. There is also a reminder to include all property-related costs in your assessment of the property you wish to purchase.
“Bond originators… will help you get a bond. They do so by helping you to prepare a generic application, which they submit to a range of banks and other financial institutions that provide home loans. In this way, they can help you to obtain a bond which your own bank might not grant you, and at the best possible interest rate.” (Buy Your First Home: South Africa’s Ultimate Property Guide for Newbies: Page 55-56).
IGrow Home Loans provides this service to our investors with almost two decades of experience. We have secured thousands of home loans for our clients with our expert bond originators. IGrow Home Loans have an outstanding record of securing our clients lower-than-average interest rates, and ensure the process is seamless and quick, with only one set of paperwork per client.
Understanding Affordability as a property investor is critical
For rental property owners, understanding what affordability means to you personally leads to long-term financial success. Zamantungwa advises her readers to make sure you can afford your home loan monthly repayments as part of your monthly budget.
This is in keeping with IGrow’s model, where we show investors a clear financial analysis of every investment property, including any monthly shortfalls. Shortfalls are the cost of your investment until you reach break even point and start receiving income. You can calculate them as follows:
Rental income – (bond repayments + levies + rental management fees) = shortfalls
The wonderful thing about property investment is that rental income increases annually and so does the value of your property. This means easily beating inflation and building both an eventual monthly income AND substantial capital growth and equity as a tangible asset.
Off-plan purchases
Zamantungwa emphasises the advantages of buying off-plan properties, because they offer lower purchase prices and some payment flexibility. You can also sometimes customise and personalise your home, if the developer offers the option to build according to your aesthetic and design preferences, as is the case with IGrow’s investment property, 33@View. She warns property investors that developers should be carefully vetted.
IGrow actively vets property developers before offering their properties for sale to our clients, for both off-plan and standard properties.
According to Zamatungwa, when it comes to the buy-to-let model, off-plan property investments offer capital accumulation before construction is even complete. This means there is higher rental output potential after tenant sourcing is successful. This thinking is similar to IGrow’s philosophies and also that off-plan property is a lucrative investment option, when available.
House hunting tips
Zamantungwa offers practical house-hunting checklists. She encourages buyers to look beyond surface appeal and investigate criteria such as suburb growth trends and municipal services. You should also consider rates and taxes connected to the property, and its long-term value potential.
This mirrors IGrow’s strategy of researching properties’ potential for long-term capital appreciation and a reliable passive income stream.
Joint Home Loans
This recommended read uncovers how joint home loans aid co-applicants in order to finance their home loans more easily. They also qualify for higher home loan amounts with a combined income.
IGrow supports the notion of joint home loans being a pathway to property investment success. Read our blog post on joint home loans here.
“Strategic partnerships and joint home loans can accelerate property portfolio building. With combined incomes, you are more likely to qualify for a home loan. Together you can also share the home loan repayments, lightening the financial load on each party.”– IGrow Home Loans
Stokvels and group financial contributions build a lump sum you can use to invest in property
Zamantungwa has noticed that stokvels are appropriate for financial leverage purposes in collective property purchases. In this way, people involved in the stokvel can pool their resources to secure a property purchase deposit or buy an investment property upfront. According to the author, the stokvel method allows investors to enter the market sooner and with stronger equity positions.
What is a “stokvel”?
“Stokvels” are what are known as ROSCAs (Rotating Savings and Credit Associations), and began as group saving schemes. Participating members contribute a set amount of money a month or at regular times. The group has power over what the money is used for, however it is common that each member receives a lump sum rotational payout on an set date. (Source)
Informal Stokvels rely on a trust-based system and sound interpersonal relationships, and usually occur between people who know each other. The person who starts the Stokvel is normally the person who runs it. All members must ensure that the outcome of the Stokvel is carried out, in terms of its intent. (Source)
The use of stokvels in property investing
“Stokvels serve a purpose with their focus. This can be savings, property, funeral or investment focused… Property Stokvels are gaining in popularity. Investors pool their savings to invest in a particular property or to purchase land for development. Usually Stokvels of this nature take some time to reach the point where they may be equipped, or have enough savings, to venture into property acquisition. It is also dependent on the extent of the membership and the skills of the administrator.” (Source)
South African banks offering collective stokvel home loans
To illustrate this, banks such as FNB and Absa have started a collective buying home loan scheme. This scheme applies to up to 12 people, who can purchase property together. Up to eight people, including their spouses, can enter into the scheme if they apply via digital channels, or up to 12 people, if they apply in a bank branch assisted by a sales consultant. The group decides together what each person’s monthly contribution will be. The monthly debit order can even be divided across the group to suit their needs. (Source)
The National Stokvel Association of South Africa (NASASA)
This organisation represents around 800 000 Stokvel groups, accumulating about R50 billion each year. This is not the full extent of the actual number of Stokvels that are currently running. This number is in the region of 8 million. To register with the NASASA, is easy. Property-focused Stokvels need to coordinate their own rules, including whose names will appear on the title deeds of property purchases. The NASASA has created a simple, legally-compliant application. (Source)
“What a Stokvel can do for you as a first-time property investor in two words: the start of a journey to wealth creation! When Stokvels are focused on this aspect, poverty can be alleviated and further provide for retirement and generational wealth.” (Source)
“Most importantly, however, investing in a Stokvel that provides loans at an interest rate that is lower than many other financial houses, means an individual may be able to secure a deposit for a home, which gives a real boost to being eligible for a home loan. Part of this journey may take time because it is far better to first pay off any existing debt using the Stokvel pay-outs, which also improves your credit rating.” (Source)
Property stokvels are increasingly popular
Zamatungwa believes that for rental property investors, the stokvel route can be a game-changer. It lowers individual risk while giving everyday South Africans better access to well-located, higher-rental-output properties.
This strategy echoes IGrow’s goal of empowering more South Africans to participate in wealth creation through affordable investment property ownership.
Having your Will in place is vital for your loved ones
Zamantungwa emphasises drawing up a Will to ensure your property is transferred easily to your loved ones if you pass away.
This aligns with IGrow’s philosophy that property investments are long-term wealth-building assets. Property can provide a wonderful vehicle of inter-generational wealth, if you use the right investment structures. Your wealth needs to be protected, for example, by placing your properties in a Trust, so you can pass them on to your loved ones tax-free.
For IGrow’s buy-to-let investors, trust and estate planning ensures your generational wealth is maintained. Your property portfolio’s rental income streams and appreciation value will continue to benefit family members when you are gone. There will be no legal disputes, estate taxes or delays if you use correct trust and estate planning structures. IGrowTrusts ensures you can leave this wonderful legacy to your loved ones.
Women’s Month: A time to celebrate female property investment entrepreneurs
This Women’s Month, it is wonderful that we can celebrate and amplify the powerful voice of Zamantungwa Khumalo.
At IGrow Wealth Investments, we celebrate all smart, empowered property investors. This August, we honour female investors who are leaving legacies for their loved ones, one property investment at a time. Buy Your First Home: South Africa’s Ultimate Property Guide for Newbies is one of the best book recommendations right now. It’s a celebration of a female property investor, author, podcaster, and change-maker.
We are also celebrating our own team of inspiring female leaders at IGrow in our recent blog post: Celebrating Women’s Day in South Africa and Women in Leadership at the IGrow Group of Companies.
Conclusion
Buy Your First Home: South Africa’s Ultimate Property Guide for Newbies, authored by Zamantungwa Khumalo, is more than a handy guide; it’s a nudge for women in particular (and all property investors) to make that first property investment move. We encourage you to buy your copy at Takelaot now.
In celebration of Women’s Month, this recommended book reminds us that property investment is possible for anyone with enthusiasm and determination.
This is one of our best book recommendations to place on your bookshelf as a must-read, add to your bedside table, and incorporate into your property investor toolkit. It belongs in the hands of everyday South Africans, wanting to create financial freedom for themselves and leave a legacy of wealth to their loved ones.
Book a free consultation with an IGrow Property Investment Specialist today, and start walking on your path to financial freedom and independence.
