Call of the Wild

Africa Bush Space - In memoriam: Roland D'Ivry Russel ...

2009-08-17T10:18:00.000+02:00

Roland D'Ivry Russel

- the man with a plan -

People that have known and dealt with Roland D'Ivry Russel over the years, will be sad to know that he passed away in February this year.

Ursula, his wife, passed away in December 2008.

Roland will be sadly missed by friends and colleges.

Social Identities

2009-04-14T13:50:00.002+02:00

Social Identities are becoming ever more popular - We at Kruger Real Estate intend to keep up with the times and started with a new venture - Going Socail!

Have a look at our profiles and creative input on the following Social Identities:

http://krugerrealestate.tumblr.com/

http://www.facebook.com/notes.php?id=1526362748#/profile.php?id=1526362748&ref=profile

http://twitter.com/KrugerREstate

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=455818628

http://delicious.com/krugerrealestate

We are having fun, and so should you! Be sure to add us to your Social Identity so that you can keep up to date with all the developments here at Kruger Real Estate!

Kruger Real Estate

2009-04-06T12:47:00.000+02:00

ABOUT KRUGER REAL ESTATE
Kruger Real Estate emerged out of the growing demand for property near or incorporated into the Greater Kruger National Park. At Kruger Real Estate, we assist people from all over the world to find the property that best meets their requirements. Our extended knowledge of properties in the Greater Kruger Park area, familiarity with different conservancies and a background in the hospitality industry have been fundamental in rendering clients an informed and professional service.

KRUGER REAL ESTATE IS EXPLORING YET ANOTHER ASPECT OF REALTY!!
Kruger Real Estate is exploring an exciting new aspect: Kruger Residential. We believe that Phalaborwa offers a unique lifestyle opportunity to families who want to combine the proximity of the Kruger National Park with the convenience of urban living.

OUR GOAL
We strive to supply you, as a potential buyer or seller of property, with service that is informed, professional and supportive. We offer regular progress reports, keep you updated with the latest market trends and provide insight into the various facets of property tax.

We look forward to a long and happy association!

KRUGER REAL ESTATE TEL: +27 (0) 15 781 7177
P.O. BOX 1370 FAX: +27 (0) 88 015 781 7177
Phalaborwa EMAIL: info@krugerrealestate.co.za
1390 URL: www.KrugerRealEstate.co.za

New premises, new look

2008-02-12T09:06:00.000+02:00

Yes, we've moved into our new offices! We're now situated at 45b Lekkerbreek Street, Phalaborwa (just across the road from our old offices). The telephones are connected (same number), the network's up and running, so all we've got to do now is let the dust settle and get used to where everything lives in our new home.

We're delighted with our new image too - the giraffes have been a lot of fun for our designer and we hope you'll like our new web site as much as we do. As well as streamlining the navigation system and speeding up the site's loading time, we've added a few fun features: you just have to see the downloadable wallpaper...

If you have any comments, please feel free to contact us (see our web site for details). And don't forget...

Live your wildest dreams!

Happy New Year from Kruger Real Estate!

2008-01-03T01:50:00.000+02:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful festive season and that you’re looking forward to another trip around the sun.

I’m very excited: my new office building is almost complete!

The project has taken a lot longer, and required a lot more of my time than I anticipated, but I’m delighted with the results. I really have to thank my lucky stars (and my brother) that I found such a great builder – his knowledge, experience and expertise – not to mention patience – has been a blessing.

Along with new offices, I’ve also decided on a new logo. In line with my marketing which promotes property near the Kruger Park – I’ve decided to exchange my masked weaver and “real estate that fits you” for a giraffe urging you to “live your wildest dreams”.

We’ve had some pretty wild discussions about which animal we want as our emblem… after all, what does a giraffe say about my company? Do we want realistic looking giraffes, contempory, stylized, cartoons? They’re proving to be very versatile – they can look elegant, inquisitive, superior, supercilious, and comical in turns.

In fact we plan to use a variety of images for different applications. If you have any pictures that we could add to our library, we really would appreciate them.

Life in this corner of the world is still peaceful. We’ve had 460mm of rain to date – and everything is looking fresh and green – with the exception of the mopane trees which are largely devoid of leaves. This years crop of mopane worms was quite phenomenal – as was the number of (human) predators scouring the countryside. It seems amazing that any survive long enough to pupate. And of course there are babies everywhere – I saw the sweetest little gnus in Grietje the other day.

With regard to Zuma’s election – it’s a bit like the land claims… there’s a lot of talk about what they’re going to do and what’s going to happen….. but it all seems to work on Africa time!! I’ve learnt to adopt a wait and see attitude - and in the meantime I’m really enjoying the sunshine!!

Everything of the best for 2008, and thank you for your support!

We're moving!

2007-12-03T04:53:00.000+02:00

You'd think that we'd be fed up with the whole moving home process, being in our business. But no, we're taking the big step ourselves shortly and will be moving premises early in the new year. After much preparation, we bought a small slice of ground on the main road through Phalaborwa and are in the process of having the new offices built to our own design.

It's been exciting and scary, but it's definitely time to move to larger offices. We've been feeling rather cramped in our current place!

So watch this space... we'll post a photo of the new place as soon as it's finished!

Why is there never enough time?!

2007-08-21T11:51:00.000+02:00

I’m turning into my mother!! I used to listen to her bemoaning the fact that there were never enough hours in a day – now I’m singing the same song!!

The property market has dropped off considerably by comparison to last year, due to the hike in interest rates, the new fica laws kicking in, and the fact that the land claims commissioner has turned his attention to the Phalaborwa area.

It would be logical to assume that I’d have more time on my hands.

In fact my agency has grown, people are taking more time and looking more carefully at the options available in the property market, and I got sidetracked doing a Specialist Course in Sectional Title through Paddocks and the University of Cape Town.

It’s a sad thing in South Africa that there aren’t more training programs for Estate Agents. The larger franchises have some in house training and motivational courses, but otherwise it’s pretty much a vacuum out there.

Anyway, classes are now over and I can concentrate on business once again.

I’ve decided to concentrate on holiday homes, farms and lodges, which require a different set of skills to the residential market.

That said, I will be taking on the marketing of some of the new (for Phalaborwa) lock up and go cluster developments that are coming on the market. Investors take note!!

So between marketing, looking at properties for sale, writing to potential buyers, keeping up with the admin, and trying not to neglect my family and friends, I keep finding I’m running out of time!!

Season of goodwill

2007-01-08T15:49:00.000+02:00

We've just been enjoying the festive season in the pool, with not a turkey or brussels sprout in sight... the great outdoors is the place to cook your Christmas dinner! While supping a chilled drink, our fillet steak simply cooked itself on the fire. A few bowls of salad and some bread helped it down, and then instead of lying in front of the TV watching "all-time favourites" we enjoyed some good old-fashioned conversation out in the pool again.

Christmas in our part of the world is a simple affair, with none of the frenzied shopping that accompanies the festive season in many countries in the western world. With the exception of a bit of tinsel and the slightly higher stock level of toys, you'd be forgiven for missing the occasion altogether unless you're a church-goer.

Speaking of the season of goodwill, Kruger Real Estate made a visit to an organisation in the bush called Daktari, a wildlife orphanage run by dedicated husband and wife team, Ian and Michele Merrifield. The Merrifields say, "The idea is to give all kinds of people, including those with disabilities, the opportunity to experience, as a team, the care of orphaned animals." To this end, they have worked tirelessly, mostly with their own money, to create a camp in a remote 700 hectare game reserve. There are chalets suitable for the wheelchair-bound and pathways around the camp to provide smooth access.

As well as encouraging those with disabilities to stay, they are also reaching out to poor local rural communities: recently, they hosted a team of children from Holland and a team of local disadvantaged black children and organised them into mixed teams to ensure that they experienced not only the wildlife but also their different cultures. The week was a great success and they are now raising funds to repeat the exercise.

We were very impressed with Ian and Michele's dedication to their dream: few people would live so closely by their ideals. Their lack of funding is a real shame, but (as their motto declares) they have "made a plan" and managed to create something that will change many lives. Daktari, we take our hats off to you and wish you lots of luck and generous donors!

Quote of the Month

2006-12-04T12:39:00.000+02:00

“The only thing that stands between a man and what he wants from life is often merely the will to try and the faith to believe that it is possible.” Richard M. Devos provided by theWorksquad.

Glenda added to this "and one's bank balance"! :-p

Glenda’s been on a working holiday

2006-10-10T14:28:00.000+02:00

In our quest to bring you the best property near Kruger National Park, Glenda has been off on her travels in the past week, exploring the further reaches of the area. As well as enjoying some game viewing as she drove through the National Park and some of the properties, Glenda enjoyed a little of the tourist side of the area, courtesy of a visiting member of the family from Canada.

The family member was a useful reminder to the intrepid Glenda that not all newcomers to Africa are comfortable with the country – South Africa has developed an unfortunate reputation internationally as a result of the media tending to report only the bad news from Johannesburg. As Glenda’s visitor discovered though, South Africa isn’t all violent townships and poverty: especially in our area, there is very little crime and although there is poverty, there is also a thriving community aiming to eradicate it. And if you want luxury, you can take your pick of fancy places to visit or live!

One of the highlights of Glenda’s trip was her visit to Sabi River Eco Estate, near Hazyview. The developer’s vision was “to create a true Eco Estate in the Sabi River Valley that safeguards and enhances the region’s indigenous habitat, preserves the biodiversity of species and provides a high standard of living for residents and visitors”. The basic idea is that a mango and citrus farm has been reclaimed for nature, removing alien species and replanting with indigenous trees, using natural landscaping, and preventing agricultural activity. As a lover of natural African bush, Glenda was impressed with their vision.

The “eco estate” is a relatively new phenomenon in South Africa but is a positive trend which we hope will be encouraged and adopted by home-buyers.

Summer's here!

2006-09-11T15:14:00.000+02:00

Summer’s really arrived now, so the evenings and mornings have warmed up considerably in the last few weeks. Next school term, beginning in early October, is the start of the official swimming season. Phalaborwa kids love this time of year, and most of them swim like fish by the time they’re about 4 years old. The adults also spend a lot of time in the water, but more often than not it’s leaning against the edge with an ice-cold beer in one hand!

Summer in Phalaborwa feels like a holiday, with most people living outside more than in, cooking on the braai (barbecue) rather than in the kitchen, lazing by the pool at every opportunity and wearing the kind of clothes that most people reserve for their holiday suitcase.

If you’re thinking of moving to our part of the world, now is a good time to see whether you can cope with the heat. With air conditioning, ceiling fans, swimming pools and high thatched roofs, most homes are well-equipped to make life comfortable even in extreme heat. But why not plan a trip and see for yourself? It’s starting to cool down in the northern hemisphere, and the days are getting shorter. What could be better than a dose of blue sky and warm-through-to-your-insides sun?

Most of our clients come from Europe. The time difference here is only 1 hour after Greenwich Mean Time or 2 hours after British Summer Time – much easier on your body clock than the Caribbean or the Pacific islands – and the flying time from London is around 10 hours, usually overnight. Call your local travel agent for details. For a listing of accommodation and places of interest in the Phalaborwa area, visit www.phalaborwa.org.za (an independent site).

Wish you were here?

2006-08-14T21:48:00.000+02:00

It's officially still winter here in South Africa, but Phalaborwa's basking in sunshine, as usual. While the poor souls in Cape Town are shivering under their coats, we've been thinking about getting a service for the air-conditioner in our car. We don't need it just yet, but it surely can't be far off now... the stores are full of SALE signs, clearing out the long sleeved jerseys to make room for the bikinis.

With Spring in the air, this is also a new start for Kruger Real Estate: venturing into the "blogosphere". We hope you find our blog informative and fun!