There is a vibrant pulse of urban transformation that often beats strongest in SA’s townships, reflecting the country’s urban reality in ways that cities can’t.

While each carries the weight of inequality and historic disadvantage, they are also centres of growth, resilience and entrepreneurship, says Hayle Ivins-Downes, Lightstone Managing Executive Real Estate & Director at Prop Data.

“Soweto’s scale and maturity give it an edge in income and property value, but Khayelitsha’s rapid growth highlights the magnetic pull of the Western Cape. Understanding these dynamics is critical, because the future of South Africa’s property market is as much about our townships as it is about our cities.”

Using three provinces with the highest GDP, Lightstone identified the largest cities in each before selecting the most populous township in each. The data was examined to compare three townships – Soweto (Johannesburg), Umlazi (Durban), and Khayelitsha (Cape Town) – population sizes, household income, property values, and property transfer activity.

Soweto, near Johannesburg, is home to ±1.5 million residents; Umlazi in Durban – ±486 000 and Khayelitsha in Cape Town, one of the fastest growing townships – ±520 000.

Adults make up 66% of Umlazi’s population, lower than Soweto and Khayelitsha (both 75%) – possibly due to many young adults leaving Umlazi for jobs in Durban, Gauteng, or Cape Town while Soweto and Khayelitsha, which are both close to major cities, keeping more working-age residents.

Lightstone estimates that Umlazi’s population grew 10% over the past ten years, behind Soweto’s 25% and Khayelitsha at 40% – reflecting the ongoing inward migration into the Western Cape from other provinces.

Apart from being the oldest township with the largest population, Soweto is also the wealthiest of the three townships when it comes to household income. Khayelitsha is the youngest and the poorest.

More than 20% of Soweto’s households have income exceeding R13 000 a month, like Umlazi but significantly more than Khayelitsha. Soweto has just more than 20% of households earning less than R6 500 a month, compared to just under 60% in Khayelitsha and around 45% in Umlazi.

The average property value in Soweto comes in at around R585 000 and Umlazi at R560 000 while Khayelitsha’s average property value trails at R350 000.

The ratio of households to formal deeds registered property is more favourable in Soweto (2.25:1) than Khayelitsha (3.3:1) and Umlazi (3.2:1).

According to various media reports, Soweto has seen government-driven upgrades, middle-class housing developments, and even lifestyle estates, while Umlazi has formal housing areas like Z and BB sections, with government and private property investment. Khayelitsha on the other hand, is dominated by informal or lower-income RDP (Reconstruction and Development Programme) housing.

Most homes in Khayelitsha are valued at between R200 000 and R400 000, while the majority in Soweto are valued between R400 000 and R700 000 and between R400 000 and R600 000 in Umlazi. Soweto has 1 600 properties valued at more than R1 million, while Khayelitsha has none.

Property transfers in both Soweto and Umlazi have been trending downwards over the past decade, despite the occasional rally. Transfers in Khayelitsha were on the increase from 2018 to 2022, before falling each year since then. Despite the trend, Soweto still accounts for most transfers by some distance.