Sandton property investors look beyond offices as market diversifies

Sandton's property investment proposition is broadening beyond its traditional office market as investors increasingly assess opportunities where industrial, residential, retail and hospitality demand converge, Business Day reports.

The shift comes as the office market recovers from prolonged oversupply, although the recovery remains uneven. Office vacancies stood at 15.5% in the first quarter of 2026, down from a peak of 21.2% in 2022, according to the SA Property Owners Association (Sapoa).

Galetti Corporate Real Estate director Justin Thom said the recovery in vacancies formed part of a broader restructuring of Sandton's property market. Decentralised areas are outperforming the central business district, with vacancies of 11.5%, drawing investors towards precincts including Wynberg, Kramerville and Marlboro, where office demand intersects with industrial, logistics, residential, retail and hospitality activity.

"The Sandton story is becoming less about a single asset class and more about the strength of the ecosystem around the node," Thom said. Sandton View, a 46,802 square metre mixed-use estate in Wynberg comprising industrial, retail, residential and hospitality components, illustrates the trend.

Gmaven, a South African commercial property data and analytics firm, recently noted that Sandton remains one of Johannesburg's strongest property nodes, yet even prime assets there are priced at a significant discount to replacement cost. Commercial property across the City of Johannesburg municipality trades at an estimated R196 billion discount to comparable Cape Town-adjusted values.

Thom said flexibility would become increasingly important as investors navigate changing property cycles, with offices remaining an important part of Sandton's market but with their prospects considered within the wider ecosystem supporting the node.