Arriving in South Africa, it’s likely you will be amazed at South Africa’s sheer diversity and natural beauty. The country enjoys a wonderful climate year-round, has good infrastructure and friendly people, and affords visitors and locals a fantastic lifestyle.
When relocating or moving to South Africa you can look forward to finding plenty of reasonably-priced, comfortable housing options available to rent, but beware buying property is not cheap in South Africa. Whether you are relocating to Johannesburg, Cape Town, or anywhere else in the Rainbow Nation, rest assured that the range, quality and affordability of accommodation will make your adjustment to life on the African continent that much smoother, and easier to manage.
Deciding where to live in South Africa (after receiving your visa or permit of course! )can be a daunting task; apart from the fact that you will be job bound South Africa straddles 1.2-million square kilometres. South Africa is as big as several European countries put together but on the other hand it’s only an eighth of the size of the US.
Geographically speaking South Africa is divided up into nine provinces with Gauteng, the smallest and most densely populated. Adjoining Gauteng is Limpopo, North West and Mpumalanga in the north. The Northern Cape, the largest province with the smallest population, is in the west. The Free State is in the middle of the country. And the coastal provinces of KwaZulu-Natal, the Eastern Cape and the Western Cape lie to the south.
There are two capitals. The legislative capital, home of South Africa’s Parliament, lies in Cape Town. The executive capital, seat of the governmental administration, is located far to the north in Pretoria.
Johannesburg, near Pretoria, is equally significant, a vital and thriving commercial hub, fuelled by booming finance and service industries. The second-biggest city is Durban, a fast-growing port on the eastern coast, and the supply route for most goods to the interior.
For more information on where to live in Cape Town and Johannesburg why not visit our recommendations pages?