Here’s the Status of the SABC Building in Sea Point

Five years after the Housing Development Agency (HDA) purchased the SABC buildings in Sea Point, it is still unclear when affordable housing will be built on the site.

Lucien Rakgoale, the HDA’s general manager of land and housing services, told Parliament’s human settlements committee on Wednesday that 280 housing units are planned for the prime state-owned land. But funding for the project remains a stumbling block.

HDA officials were unable to answer MP’s questions on how much the development would cost or when construction would begin.

The SABC sold Rocklands Villa to the HDA in 2021, said Rakgoale.

The sale of the property was welcomed by housing activists, who protested the initial planned auction of the building. They had argued that the land should be used for affordable housing instead of being sold to the private sector.

Rakgoale said they stopped the SABC from auctioning the property because it was suitable for housing that would “transform the Sea Point space”.

“It is positioned in a well-located area less than 5km away from the Cape Town CBD,” noted Rakgoale’s presentation. 120 bachelor units, 100 one-bedroom units, 50 two-bedroom and ten three-bedroom units are possible on the site.

The project is at the “packaging stages” (meaning it is being finalised), which includes a housing demand market study for the area.

“This is based on the preliminary assessment that we’ve done. The location is quite perfect,” Rakgoale told MPs.

He said they would not be able to use the current buildings on the site as they were in a state of disrepair.

Four more HDA properties

Four other HDA-owned properties are at similar stages: one in Braamfontein with potential for 422 units, one in Sea View, Montclair in Durban for 200 households, one in Kimberly near Sol Plaatje University, and one in Bloemfontein.

Zelna Abader (MK) said she appreciated the presentation, but expressed concern about implementation.

“Slow implementation undermines the urgency of the housing crisis. If we continue to celebrate pipeline projects instead of completed units, we risk normalising underperformance in a sector where people [have waited] decades for dignified shelter,” she said.

She recommended that a quarterly progress report be submitted to the committee.

Conrad Poole (DA) asked for detailed costs and timelines. “We welcome the strategic acquisition of well-located land, particularly in the inner city nodes, but that must translate into occupation.”

He added that the success of the projects would be measured by how many families benefit from them.

Bheki Khenisa, the HDA’s CEO, told MPs that various funding models were being considered. “We’ve done the development plans for them. They are finalised. We know what the cost will be for all of those buildings, but unfortunately, it’s not something that we can say in a month’s time we are starting with this project.”

In the national budget tabled before Parliament on Wednesday, the HDA is allocated R276-million in 2026, up from about R266-million in 2025, and will continue to receive above-inflation increases over the next three years.

Social Housing Regulatory Authority gets a grilling

The Social Housing Regulatory Authority (SHRA) was also supposed to present to Parliament on plans for stalled social housing projects.

In November, we reported that out of the 52 projects being managed by SHRA, ten are on hold or blocked. More than 3,870 units still need to be completed, and a further 1,291 have been completed but do not have tenants.

But MPs were unimpressed when they received a revised copy of SHRA’s presentation, only on Wednesday morning. Minister Thembi Simelane scolded the SHRA. “I am starting backfooted,” she said.

Albert Seabi (ANC), chairperson of the committee, chimed in: “It’s a serious indictment … entities are there to assist the minister to deliver. We don’t want to get into a fight with the minister when she has to account. It creates problems for the committee,” he said

Several MPs also complained that they had not had a chance review the new presentation before the meeting.

“I agree fully with the minister. I’m really not satisfied with how SHRA is dealing with these presentations … In the morning, while you sit in the bus, you get a presentation and that’s not on,” said Poole.

The SHRA delegation left the meeting without presenting.

There was also a presentation by the National Housing Finance Corporation (NHFC) on governance and administration issues at the entity.

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