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a month, and a subsidy of R5 000 for households earning between
R2 501 - R3 500 a month. A further subsidy was announced in
February 1995 (backdated to March 1994), whereby a R15 000
subsidy is available for households with a combined monthly income
below R800. Such subsidies apply for the purchase of properties
costing up to R65 000. (This maximum is likely to be increased in
the future).
Two levels of consolidation subsidy are granted to households who
reside on a serviced site (the latter financed inter alia by the
Independent Development Trust). A subsidy of R7 500 is paid to
households with a monthly income of less than R800, while a
subsidy of R5 000 is available for households with a monthly income
between R801 - Rl 500. The consolidation subsidy is for the
construction of a dwelling on the serviced site. All consolidation
subsidies only apply to officially approved housing projects (as
sanctioned by the Provincial Housing Board of KwaZulu-Natal,
previously known as the Regional Housing Board of KwaZulu-Natall.
The Board is likewise responsible for payment of the standard
subsidies. Payment is made to the builder/project developer or the
seller of an existing dwelling, and not to the prospective home
owner. All subsidies constitute a once-only, non-refundable
disbursement by the State. The Board also provides bulk and
connector infrastructure grants to developers and local authorities,
in order to expedite the delivery of housing.
(v) The estimated composition of the housing stock in Natal/KwaZulu,
as at 1990, was as follows (Van Gass, 1993):
Type of housing stock Percentage in urban areas Percentage in peri-urban
and rural areas
Formal houses 50 4
Formal flats 13 -
Informal orderly 4 1
Informal spontaneous 24 94
Informal backyard 9 1
100 100
(vi) A useful source of statistics on low cost housing in South Africa is,
The housing monitor, published by Settlement Dynamics cc, P 0 Box
1868, Parklands, 2121. The publication was first issued in
November 1989, and is currently in its fourteenth edition (published
twice a year). Numerous data are available for each province
including the number of housing projects planned, underway or
recently completed; the number and types of dwellings or facilities
provided at each scheme, and the type and quantity of building
materials/fittings used. Other details include financing mechanisms,
levels of infrastructure services, and sales figures for low cost