Aerial view of a city. Renting is a chapter of life for many.

Rethinking how South Africans rent

Thirty-six is the average age at which South Africans buy their first home. For many, that means years of renting before ever qualifying for a mortgage.

Property prices, credit requirements, and how we work have all changed. For a lot of people, renting is not temporary anymore. It is a major chapter of life.

So we are asking: Should renting only be an expense? Or could it play a role in long-term asset building too? That is what we are exploring, starting with research.

Why we’re running this survey

It is no secret that South Africa’s housing landscape is changing. New rental and ownership models are emerging elsewhere. But not every idea fits every market. Before we build anything, we want to hear from you. We are not assuming who our audience is, which property brackets or locations matter most, or whether we should aim higher or lower. We would rather let the market direct us now than bet wrong and have to rebrand later.

This short survey helps us learn the following.

How you think about your long-term financial future while renting.
Whether you would consider new types of rental arrangements if the structure made sense.
What conditions, safeguards, or trade-offs would matter most to you.

We are building towards something, and we want the final product to reflect what you actually want. Your input shapes what Rent+ becomes.

Take the survey with Lerato

Rent+ team. Young South African renters building this initiative.

Who's behind this research

Rent+ is a South African rental platform in development, focused on creating structured ways for long-term renters to participate in property asset value. Working towards a new rental model which has been under development for the past year in consultation with legal, property, and finance professionals to ensure it is practical within South Africa's existing regulatory and property framework.

Created by 2 young South Africans, we understand intimately how difficult it is to graduate from renting in the 21st century.

We are working to ensure that any future pilot is:

Legally sound
Financially transparent
Operationally realistic

This forms part of an early validation and market research phase informing potential pilot projects with our partnered institutional property owners. No homes are being sold through this page.

I rent or want to rent

Help us shape what we build. Tell us how you want the final product to be. Share your situation, your priorities, and what would make you consider something different. The survey takes about three minutes.

Tenant research survey

I develop or own property

We want to hear from the supply side too. We want your view on locations, segments, and what would need to be true for new models to work. It is a quick survey.

Developer research survey

Stay updated

Do you want to follow the research or hear about future pilot opportunities? Leave your email and we will keep you in the loop. We do not send spam.

You’re on the list. We’ll be in touch.

Do you prefer to tell us how you want the final product to be? Take the research survey with Lerato.

Tenant research survey