TOY COLLECTION DRIVE

What a crazy year we have had and believe it or not Christmas is around the corner with 60 odd days to go. This year will be a tough Christmas for more people than usual, considering the financial impact Covid-19 has had on families and businesses alike. 

In an attempt to brighten Christmas morning for those less privileged Fidelity ADT Western Cape, in partnership with Harfield Village will be hosting a toy collection drive on Saturday 05th December in Hampstead Community Park in Princes Rd, Claremont.  

We are hoping this will be a community event and it is the perfect opportunity to allow children to donate and handover to those less fortunate, we will adhere to Covid-19 safety protocols and provide some face painting and coffee and confectionery on the day. 

Keep an eye out on the Harfield Village Facebook page for further announcements. In the meantime we ask you to please start collecting new or gently used toys to donate on the day. 

Fidelity-ADT


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Lower house prices in the Western Cape behind renewed interest from first-home-buyers

Property in the Western Cape is regarded by many as among the most expensive in the country, and for first-home buyers, often completely out of reach.

However, the recent drop in regional house prices, as well as the favourable lending environment created by the lowest interest rate in decades, is helping first home buyers to at last gain a foothold in this competitive property market.

BetterBond reports that first-home buyers accounted for 62% of its home loan applications in the Western Cape during June, up from the same period last year. “Increased activity from first-home buyers bodes well for some recovery of the property market as lockdown restrictions ease,” says Carl Coetzee, CEO of BetterBond. “We are pleased also to see that nationally, first-home buyers account for 70% of our home loan applications for the year to date. This is an increase of almost 17% compared with last year.”

While some of this activity may be due to pent-up demand, exacerbated by the lockdown period, the dip in house price inflation in recent months, particularly in the Western Cape, as well as the favourable prime interest rate, are also contributing factors. “The average purchase price of homes in the Western Cape has dropped by 3% compared with June last year, while the price of homes for first-home buyers has dropped by 6%, says Coetzee. Most of the other provinces, including the Eastern Cape, Northern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal, have shown average price increases of between 4 and 11% for the same period.

The FNB Estate Agent Survey for the second quarter of 2020 also attributes the modest market recovery to the release of the pent-up demand created because of lower purchase prices and borrowing costs. Certainly, the recent repo rate cuts have given first-home buyers some wiggle room when seeking pre-approval for a home loan, notes Coetzee. BetterBond’s figures show that the national average deposit of purchase price for first-home buyers has dropped by 21%, allowing new buyers to apply for a bond without having to wait until they have a sizable deposit in hand.

Adrian Goslett, Regional Director & CEO of RE/MAX of Southern Africa says the interest from first-home buyers is encouraging, at a time when sales activity has been predictably slower because of lockdown. “Our reported sales figures in the Western and Northern Cape Region dropped by 32% year on year. This is despite the fact that across all markets we have noticed an increased interest in the first-home buyers’ market. Many within this segment are looking to capitalise on the low interest rates and are bargaining down prices.”

Agents surveyed by FNB agree that buyer interest is particularly strong at the lower end of the market. “The fact that there is no transfer duty payable on homes of up to R1 million is undoubtedly an added incentive for first-home buyers, and just over 45% of BetterBond’s loans approved in the past year across the country were for homes of between R500 000 and R1 million,” says Coetzee.

Goslett adds: “Properties below R400,000 continue to account for the largest portion of sales at 32.4% of the total transfers registered at the Deeds Office during the second quarter, while the luxury market (homes over R3 million) shrunk to just 3% of its usual 5% share of the market.” Although he predicts a slow corrective growth in the residential property market for the remainder of the year, Goslett emphasises that current market conditions present investors with a significant opportunity. “With interest rates at a historic low and with downward pressure on house prices, investors stand to make great returns on investment by purchasing property now.” This is especially true for first-home buyers, who would do well to use the current lending climate to get their foot in the door,” concludes Coetzee.



Anne-Marie Bamber is Norgarb Properties dedicated Home Loans Consultant. She has over 15 years’ experience in assisting clients with their Home Loan needs and has placed many happy families in their dream homes.

Contact her today for no cost stress-free home-buying.
Anne-Marie Bamber
Home Loans consultant
Tel: +27 (0)21 851 3568 | Fax: +27 (0)21 441 1494 | Cell: +27 (0)82 071 1665
E-mail: anne-marie.bamber@betterlife.co.za









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NOVEMBER IN THE GARDEN

It's November already, can you believe it!? 2020 has flown by in a blur. We say that every year, but this year has taken it to a new level.

I've been spending a lot of time in the mountains, and am so deeply inspired by the natural ecosystems we're surrounded by. We're so blessed to have forests, ocean and mountains on our doorstep. This has me thinking about biodiversity, and how it's such a marker of resilience in all systems. As we head into November, with the flowers bursting into blossom, temperatures climbing steadily albeit gently and general spirits lifting in proportion with lockdown restrictions, we have the opportunity to be active contributors to biodiversity in our gardens and neighbourhood.

If you have a garden, balcony or windowsill where you can have plants, have you thought about expanding the diversity of the plants you care for? Can you share some cuttings with a neighbour, or plant something new based on what is seasonal? It may seem like you're just taking care of one more plant, but introducing that one plant could enhance the biodiversity in your home or garden multifold. This biodiversity applies to us as humans too – perhaps this November, as we head into the festive season, why not consider reaching out to someone you haven't spoken to in a while to share wishes for a great Spring season and to ask how they are doing? Who knows what emergent opportunities may arise in both your lives and beyond.

Back to the garden... Life is bountiful in the garden as temperatures and daily sun hours extend. Make sure you are mulching so that the soil doesn't start to dry out as things heat up. 

Here's the plant list for November:

Amaranth, Basil, Bush and Climbing beans, Beetroot, Broccoli, Butternut, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Carrot, Chard, Cape Gooseberry, Carrot, Celery, Chives, Chilli, Cucumber, Eggplant, Kale, Kohlrabi, Ginger, Globe Artichoke, Leek, Leaf Mustard, Lettuce, Jerusalem artichokes, Parsley, Peas, Potato, Pumpkin, Radish, Rhubarb, Sweetcorn, Sweet pepper, Sweet potato, Turnip, Tomato, Watercress, Watermelon, Zucchini

Wishing you a diverse November – in your gardens, and your lives!

Patchwork Group
Gabriella Garnett
076 2199 849 | gabriella.garnett@gmail.com


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FOHP Newsletter

HVA & HVCID Donate to Friends of Harfield Parks

We would like to thank the Harfield Village Association (HVA) and the Harfield Village Community Improvement District (HVCID) for their very generous donations of R4000 and R5000 respectively.

The HVA hopefully needs no introduction, but works hard to coordinate with local businesses, schools and civic organisations in Harfield Village to make the area a beautiful and pleasant place to live. The HVCID works specifically with community members, local security companies and the municipality to keep Harfield a safe and secure place for residents and their children.

Donations like these are crucial for sustaining our operations and keeping the parks clean, bio-diverse and beautiful. 

2020 Annual General Meeting (AGM)

Due to the need to maintain social distancing, the Friends of Harfield Parks will be having a virtual AGM this year. We will send out the Chairperson's report alongside the financial statements soon, as well as a call for new committee members and other interested members of the community who might like to participate in the parks without becoming full committee members. Stay tuned for more information :). 

Street Cleaning Challenge - November 

On 14 November, HVCID and the Friends of Harfield Parks would like to challenge Harfield's street groups to participate in a new initiative to clean and beautify our streets and street-corners. HVCID's Jenni Coleman will be releasing more information closer to the time, and we will be releasing some guidelines on the do's and don't's of planting in public spaces. 

Wildflowers and mowing

Many Harfielders will have noticed that certain areas of the parks have been left unmowed this Spring to encourage wildflower growth. We would like to thank the City of Cape Town and the contractors for listening to civic groups and adjusting their mowing plans to accommodate the wildflowers this year, which helps to beautify our parks and maintain our flower and pollinator populations. 

Warm regards,
The FOHP Committee


For more information and directions you can email us at harfield.parks@gmail,com. You can donate using the following details: Friends of Harfield Parks; Standard Bank, Claremont; Account number: 076293874

Or use the Snapscan below.

SOUTH AFRICA’S NEW PRIVACY LAWS AND YOUR PROPERTY TRANSACTION

For many readers, the acronyms POPI and POPIA have become familiar due to the prolific news items following on the recent announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa that the Protection of Personal Information Act is operational and that businesses must gear up their practice and to be compliant next year, 1 July 2021.

From the point of view of a property seller/purchaser, landlord or tenant

In transacting for the sale or purchase of a property, or when premises are leased, a substantial amount of very private information changes hands. It is likely that an identity document must be provided, together with proof of residential address, employer detail, proof of income (tenant), contact numbers and email addresses. In a lease there is sometimes also details of a third party required who may be contacted should you default.

Is this no longer allowed? The answer is yes and no. Let us explain.

Your estate agent and POPIA

POPIA’s principal impact on businesses will generally lie in its customer interaction, human resources (processing of employee information), marketing and advertising; procurement (processing of supplier information), information management, finance (debtors and creditors information), and cross-border transfers of personal information (if applicable). In its barest essence, POPIA establishes a framework to give flesh to one’s right to privacy, whilst at the same time balancing the legitimate needs of businesses to collect and use personal data for legitimate purposes. Non-compliance comes with the threat of reputational and financial risk (with fines of up to R10 million).

POPIA does not prohibit businesses from continuing with their legitimate business operations. Consent from data subjects (the clients) need not be obtained in all instances to process (use, apply, collect, store, delete) their personal information. The emphasis is rather that, when personal information is obtained from clients and used for an identified and legitimate purpose, the collection, storage and ultimate deletion of the data must be done responsibly. (There are exceptions of course where consent or other additional considerations is required such as where the business wants to use the data for electronic marketing; processing the personal information of a child, and so forth.)

The default position is set out in section 11 of POPIA which makes provision for justification grounds, in other words, even though there is no consent, the business can “justify” why it is processing the personal information through other means. These grounds include, for example, if the processing is necessary for concluding a contract to which the individual is a party or it is necessary to perform under such contract, such as where a sale or lease of immovable property is concerned. Or, where the processing complies with an obligation imposed by law on the responsible party (an example might be processing for purposes of complying with legislation such as RICA or FICA).

From this it is clear that as seller, purchaser, landlord or tenant, you may be asked to provide certain personal information necessary for the transaction. Where this information falls within the specific exclusions, is used for other purposes not aligned to the reason why it was obtained in the first place, is leaked to the general public, POPIA questions will arise. However, if the information is processed for the transaction in a safe, secure fashion and within the limitations imposed by POPIA, the use thereof is not contrary to POPIA.

For enquiries, contact Maryna Botha at STBB’s Compliance Team on LaurenS@stbb.co.za.

STBB Claremont



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HOW TO KEEP CRIMINALS OUT

 

The 6 most common ways criminals get into homes and how to keep them out

Our homes are supposed to be our safe havens, places of peace and relaxation, happy memories and stability. Unfortunately, with crime levels as high as they are most South Africans actually live in a constant state of stress - at home, at work and even on holiday.

One way to create better peace of mind at home is to make sure you have adequate security to keep criminals out, says Charnel Hattingh, National Marketing and Communications Manager at Fidelity ADT.

“Good home security starts with knowing your property’s vulnerabilities,” she explains. “Walk your property and see things through a criminal’s eyes. Is your perimeter protection adequate? How easily can the gate be derailed? Do you have enough lighting around the house? Should you put a better lock on the front door?”

She says these are the six most common ways criminals gain access:

1.    Forcing locks on gates.

2.    Forcing locks on doors.

3.    Breaking windows and forcing burglar bars.

4.    Climbing over walls.

5.    Disabling electric fencing.

6.    Through open garages which are connected to the house.

Hattingh points out that these methods of gaining entry are often even used when residents are inside the home.

“If we look at the common methods of entry, it is obvious that good perimeter protection is your first line of defence. This includes proper walling with razor wire or electric fencing (with tamper sensors), good lighting, a secure automated gate which cannot be tampered with or derailed and an intercom system which allows you to see who is at the gate.”

“Poor perimeter protection speaks volumes – it is an indication to criminals that your house is probably also easy to get into.”

Other ways to protect your home and family:

·   Keep small dogs in the house as they can alert you early to anything untoward.

·  Outdoor beams are valuable early-warning devices and sensors should also be installed along outside walls, on the roof and in the ceiling.

·  Subscribe to an armed response service and ensure all your security systems are linked to this.

· Install sensor lights strategically around the house, especially in front of bedrooms.

· Install strong doors and security gates with good quality locks.

· Activate outdoor beams and an alarm in unused areas of the house when you are home.

·  Never leave the gate open if you are entertaining and expecting guests.

· Close curtains/blinds at night.

·  Place panic buttons in areas your family is likely to need them, like in the lounge and in the garage.

·  Get to know your neighbours and keep an eye on each other’s properties.

·  Be part of local crime WhatsApp or Facebook groups.

· Support your Community Policing Forum and attend meetings.

· Report suspicious activity or vehicles to your security company or the SAPS to investigate.

·  Report all incidents of crime, no matter how trivial. This helps security companies and police identify trends and implement strategies to curb crime.

Hattingh says it is concerning that many residents do not bother with improved home security because they believe “if they want to get in they will, no matter what”.

“This is not necessarily true. Criminals are not likely to target a home with proper security; it is simply too risky when they can just move on to an easier target instead. It is important to regularly check your perimeter for weaknesses and to stay informed of crime trends in your area.”

If you need to think about it, how good is it really? Book a free home security or upgrades assessment and always stay one step ahead of danger. Call 086 12 12 300 or email alwaysthere.c@fidelity-services.com

 Fidelity-ADT

COPING WITH COVID-19

Coping with COVID-19: A recent UK poll shows there are three major responses to lockdown, but how did you cope with the lockdown as we look back? And what does this tell us about how your brain works? 

By Dr Samantha J. Brooks Ph.D.



According to a poll carried out by King’s College London in April 2020 - involving 2,250 respondents - there were three main responses to the COVID lockdown: acceptance, suffering and resistance (Duffy & Allington, 2020).  These different responses were distinguished by the level of support for the lockdown measures and compliance with them, how people felt they coped, the extent to which they followed official rules and by their expectations about how things will look in the future.  Accepters were mostly male, around the age of 50 who tend to hold conservative views (South African equivalent loosely ANC). Sufferers were mostly female, around the age of 44 with no strong political views.  Those who resisted the lockdown were mostly male, significantly younger on average at age 29 and tend to hold labour views (loosely equivalent to the DA). Accepting and suffering groups accounted for about 45% of the UK population respectively, whereas resistance was in the minority, at about 10%.

Accepters say they followed the lockdown rules almost all the time and didn’t feel particularly disturbed by it (e.g. they haven’t lost sleep or felt anxious or depressed).  Interestingly though, accepters don’t believe that life will return to normal any time soon, they seem to put their trust in the government, and spend less time compared to the other two groups checking the internet or social media for updates on coronavirus.

Sufferers however did report feeling much more anxious and depressed than the other two groups since

lockdown was introduced and have worse sleeping patterns.  They tended to follow the lockdown rules completely – often more than the other groups – and supported the lockdown measures.  However, this group didn’t trust the government, believing that it acted too slowly, and that it uses misinformation.  Suffers are likely to check the internet or social media daily for updates on coronavirus.

Resisting people only complied with the lockdown rules 50% of the time and did not support the measures imposed by the government, believing that too much fuss was being made.  In fact, these people would often secretly go against official guidance, such as meeting up with friends outside the home or going outside during curfew.  And this group were much more likely to believe in conspiracy theories, such as the coronavirus being created in a lab and deliberately spread.  Finally, this group checked the internet or social media for updates on the virus much more often than the other two groups.

What do these responses to the lockdown tell us about differences in how our brains function? 

Research suggests that there are three types of conformity behaviour in any given population: compliance, identification and internalisation.  Compliance is when we pretend to go along with things but really, we resist them.  Identification is when we partly comply with the rules but then change our minds, back to our original beliefs, when in private.  Internalisation, however, is when we fully – both in public and in private – accept the rules, even if they go against the norm.  And this is what we have seen throughout lockdown across the world. 

People who tend to accept rapidly changing rules imposed by their government, tend to have unwavering, deeply held beliefs in tradition and power.  Such people are likely to have internalised beliefs about authority that contribute to their sense of self, which can often reflect in increased ventromedial prefrontal activity.  The ventromedial prefrontal cortex is linked to self-representation, control of emotion, reward and goal-oriented behaviour.   In the suffering group are people who try –but struggle – to accept rules imposed on them, have difficulties with emotion regulation and are more likely to experience anxiety and depression.  This is represented in the brain as reduced dorsolateral prefrontal cortex activation and increased anterior cingulate cortex/amygdala activation. These brain regions are linked to cognitive control and emotional arousal, respectively.  Finally, those who resist the lockdown rules are perhaps the least emotionally influenced by changing rules, because they are already engaged in high emotional responses to the environment – typical of the younger group who constituted those who resisted lockdown.  Additional societal changes seem to overburden an already-overloaded prefrontal executive control system in the younger group.  And since an overburdened prefrontal cortex is costly for the brain’s energy reserves, a choice has to be made between behaviours that are associated with having a strong peer-group identity, such as flouting lockdown rules by continuing to socialise with friends, or behaviours that represent parental control, such as adhering to societal rules. 

With these ideas in mind, in collaboration with the University of Witwatersrand we are currently testing how cognitions and emotions function across the three groups that respond so differently to lockdown rules.  Thankfully President Cyril Ramaphosa has now lifted the lockdown restrictions to level 1 – but think about how you coped with the lockdown measures, and what it might tell you about how your brain functions!

Have a wonderful time enjoying the relaxed lockdown Harfielders, but remember to continue adhering to the rules (face masks, social distancing) that keep us all safe!


Dr Samantha Brooks is a UK neuroscientist in Harfield Village, specialising in the neural correlates of impulse control from eating disorders to addiction.  For more information you can contact Samantha at: drsamanthabrooks.com 



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