The Property Bureau sells residential property across Cape Town’s southern suburbs, the Atlantic Seaboard and False Bay. We are a boutique, owner operated agency, PPRA registered, letting and managing homes here since 2007, and every mandate is personally signed off by the Principal Agent.
Most of the homes we sell belong to landlords we already manage for. That is not an accident. The agency that has run your property for years already knows its rental history, its condition, what it earns and who buys in the street. That is a different starting point from an agent meeting the house for the first time.
Our selling commission
- Existing management client, sole mandate. 3.5% of the sale price achieved.
- New instruction, sole mandate. 4% of the sale price achieved.
- Open mandate. Quoted on the property, and higher than a sole mandate.
Commission is calculated on the price achieved and accepted in the offer to purchase, and is payable on transfer. An open mandate costs more, for the same reason we charge on rent collected rather than rent due. On a sole mandate we invest in marketing knowing we are paid if the property sells. On an open mandate that same work can earn nothing, so the rate carries the risk. See all our fees in full.
Selling a property that is currently let
A lease does not fall away because the property is sold. The buyer takes the property subject to the existing lease, which means the tenant stays until that lease ends on its own terms. This is where most sales of investment property go wrong, because the seller is advised late, or not at all.
Handled properly it is an advantage rather than a problem. A tenanted property with a clean payment record, a compliant lease and proper inspection reports sells to an investor as an income stream, not as a house with a complication attached. We hold all of that already on the properties we manage, in PayProp, from the first month.
Selling out of a trust or a deceased estate
We manage a portfolio of properties held in trusts and in deceased estates, and we sell out of them. These sales run to a different rhythm. There are trustees or an executor to satisfy, beneficiaries who may not agree with each other, and paperwork that has to be right before an offer can even be signed. The work is in the sequencing rather than the selling.
What a sole mandate buys you
- One agency accountable for the outcome, with the Principal Agent signing off on the mandate.
- A pricing recommendation based on what we see letting and selling in the same streets, not on what you hope to get.
- Marketing committed up front, because we are paid if the property sells.
- Buyer qualification before viewings, not after.
- One point of contact from mandate to transfer.
A relationship, not a transaction
Most agencies measure themselves on what they sold last month. We would rather be measured on how long owners stay. Properties on our books have been managed by this agency for more than a decade, through changes of tenant, changes in the market and changes in the law, with the same Principal Agent accountable throughout. Owners who eventually sell already know exactly how we work, because they have watched us work for years. We have sold across the southern suburbs, from Harfield Village and Plumstead through Claremont, Newlands and Rondebosch to Constantia and Wynberg. See properties we have sold.
Common questions
How much commission do estate agents charge in Cape Town?
Commission is negotiable and is set in the mandate, not by law. The Property Bureau charges 4% of the sale price achieved on a sole mandate for a new instruction, and 3.5% on a sole mandate where we already manage the property. Open mandates are quoted on the property and cost more, because the marketing investment is the same but may earn nothing. Commission is calculated on the price accepted in the offer to purchase and is payable on transfer.
Do you charge less to sell if you already manage the property?
Yes. Existing management clients pay 3.5% of the sale price achieved on a sole mandate, against 4% for a new instruction on the same terms. The service is the same either way.
Can I sell my property while a tenant is still living in it?
Yes. The sale does not end the lease. The buyer takes the property subject to it, and the tenant remains until the lease runs its course. Whether that helps or hinders depends on the tenant, the rent and how well the lease and the payment record stand up to scrutiny. An investor buyer usually wants the tenant to stay.
Who sells a property held in a trust or a deceased estate?
The trustees or the executor give the mandate, not the beneficiaries. We manage and sell property in both, and the practical work is getting the authority, the resolutions and the compliance in order early, so that the sale is not held up once an offer is on the table.
Should I give a sole mandate or an open mandate?
An open mandate feels safer because more agencies are working on it. In practice it often means none of them commits marketing budget, because any of them can lose the fee at the last moment. A sole mandate concentrates accountability in one agency you can hold to it. If you are not confident enough in an agency to give it a sole mandate, the question is whether you should be instructing it at all.
Talk to us about selling
If you are thinking about selling, whether we manage the property or not, we will give you an honest view of what it is worth and what it will take. Request a free valuation, or get in touch. If you are a landlord, you can also see what full management covers.
Reviewed August 2026.
