Bustling building industry a boost

GEORGE NEWS - "Who would have thought that our once small town would be in such demand? The influx of people to George has been crazy," says Sheldon Bubanj, chairman of the Southern Cape Master Builders' Association and owner of DMC Developments.

"For our industry it has been great, especially for the contractors in the residential market. I find that the estates are especially busy with the Gauteng clients insisting on the safety of estates.

"From main contractors to suppliers, subcontractors and consultants, everyone has had work over the past few years and in many instances, we have had to turn work away."

According to Bubanj, the increase in activity has also led to more jobs.

"Every day I see new contractor vehicles with CAW registrations. These contractors obviously employ local people. I do however find that many of the new contractors bring their own skilled labour to George and only really employ unskilled locals. Having said that, there has always been a shortage of artisans in our area."

He says the rising demand has caused the entire construction supply chain to expand. "One does not have to look far to find a building related supplier whose shop has expanded with more staff to capitalise on the growth in the industry."

Bubanj says pre-Covid the demand for houses in our area was already high.

"What has really been noticeable for me is, it seems as if Covid has actually led to the increase in people moving to George. Many of our clients are from Gauteng and have been planning to make the move to George for years, however, have always felt that leaving their businesses to run without full-time supervision was not worth it.

"Covid however changed this. Forcing people to work from home proved to them that running their business remotely was possible and therefore made the decision to 'semigrate' much easier."

He says having the airport close by is also a huge drawcard.

Lots of new business

Marius Smith, chairman of the South African Institute of Architectural Technologists and owner of M Smith Architectural Group, says the influx of people has brought a lot of new business. "We are extremely grateful for that. In the past, business in George was very much season-bound with holidays providing a boost. Now the city is becoming self-sustaining."

He says all architectural offices are very busy and for his firm, January 2022 was the best month in 12 years. About a third of their current clients are new residents and the ratio of new building projects to renovations is about 50/50.

"I think the scarcity of housing in George with almost no rental property being available leads to more renovations and additions. What is positive about the newly arrived residents is that they expect fast and effective service, which ensures that the best businesses are the ones to make faster progress."

Another local architectural technologist says the influx is bringing welcome new business and between 70% and 80% of their current clients are new residents.

"We are under pressure as always. It is also placing pressure on the municipality that is being inundated with building plan applications that now take months to be approved."

Sheldon Bubanj, chairman of the Southern Cape Master Builders' Association.