About us:
Africrest Properties owns, re/develops and manages office, retail, industrial and residential property. We pride ourselves on being able to structure dynamic deals to suit our tenants’ needs, striving always for our tenants’ utmost happiness.
Africrest owns one of the largest middle income residential portfolios in South Africa and has become an industry leader in this asset class. Africrest specialises in converting office buildings into beautiful apartments as well as developing green-field apartment communities that are safe to live in with world-class facilities such as fully equipped gyms, A-grade work from home areas, games rooms, swimming pools, soccer courts and braai areas to name a few…
We are an innovative leader when it comes to converting C-Grade properties into landmark, A-Grade space. With a keen eye for potential, the company, led by the entrepreneurial spirit of Justin Blend, Greg Blend, Grant Friedman and Nick Katsapas, believes that with vision and dedication, Africrest can offer tenants the opportunity to rent quality, expertly managed spaces at affordable rates.
Africrest Properties does not look at current yields in isolation but rather at buildings whereby additional value can be unlocked either by redeveloping, re-tenanting, or micromanaging the buildings.
The company also looks for opportunities which are tenant driven. Africrest has concluded numerous successful partnerships with tenants in the ownership of their property.
Please see the Tenant Partnership Model page.
Testimonials.
"WFP and Africrest liaise closely on various building management matters including but not limited to general maintenance, upkeep, leasehold improvements and construction-related. Africrest has a dedicated site manager available to provide support at all times. WFP has found Africrest to be very accommodating in trying to fulfil our requirements. They act quickly and give matters arising the full attention deserved. We have no reservations or hesitation in recommending Africrest Properties"
Donna Favorito, Senior Regional Finance and Administration Officer
“Africrest and their management team spent time understanding our business and property needs while negotiating on our new premises. This allowed them to tailor make a rental solution that worked with our long-term plans and current financial situation. Under very tight deadlines, they made sure we could find a fair and workable solution for both parties for all challenges that presented themselves during the negotiations.”
Ricky Treger, Joint Group Managing Director
"Our offices are an extension of who we are as a company and how we represent ourselves in the physical world. Africrest understand this ethos and have been very accommodating in ensuring that the smallest details are attended to."
Tony Koutakis, CEO of Ignite
"Working with Africrest has been a fruitful and seamless experience. We were attracted by the tenant partnership model which has allowed Sorbet to continue growing our business without constraining our capital while, at the same time, enjoying the benefits of having partial ownership in our property"
Ian Fuhr, Founder and CEO of Sorbet
"We are pleased to be in a central creative space close to all the amenities of Rosebank, including hotels and the Gautrain. The environment is perfect for a business of our nature."
Alessandro Tucci, Senior Vice-President and GM of Fox International Channels Africa
“We have occupied one of Africrest’s properties for more than five years and have had an excellent working relationship with them for the entire duration. They have always been honest and fair in their dealings with us and they have also really cared about our needs and acted with speed to fulfil them.”
Craig Salit, Executive Director of Sunpac
"Our relationship with Africrest has been excellent and they really came to the party in helping us fulfil our needs. Africrest were very easy going and offered a lot of very useful advice"
Rael Lasarow, Joint MD of Thirst
"We have been looking for a home for our growing business together with Africrest and we believe that 132 Jan Smuts offers what we need in terms of location, functionality of space and easy access for both clients and staff."
Guy Brooks, CEO and Founder of CSS
"It is energising to (be in) a building where all your neighbouring tenants are in a creative space, music, television, fashion. Working with Africrest Properties has been a pleasure and the move has gone smoothly considering the very tight time frames and the building’s revamp."
Randall Abrahams, MD of Universal Music
"SYNAQ has grown exponentially and we required new offices for our expansion plans. The Africrest team assisted with the sourcing, negotiation and integration into our new home. We are thrilled to have created a unique innovative space that will further help us shake up the cloud service industry in South Africa."
David Jacobson, Managing Director of SYNAQ
"New Africa Control Engineering (Pty) Ltd first introduction to Africrest Properties was in 2014. During this time we have found them to be very amicable and reasonable in all matters but our appreciation of them grew substantially when our property needs drastically altered and even though we were tied into a lease, their ability to aid and accommodate our new requirements went above and beyond our expectations. We confidently recommend Africrest Properties to anyone as an ethical and professional property company. Their genuine interest in helping us was a welcome change in today’s times."
Alan Taylor, Director of New Africa Control Engineering (Pty) Ltd’s
“One of the things that have impressed me most about Africrest is how responsive they are to our queries. We always receive a reply promptly and they actually care about making us feel comfortable in our home. Unlike most landlords, we are treated like a valued resident, rather than just another tenant.”
Zinhle Jacobs
