STELLIES SQUATTER: A SYSTEM BENDING TO EXPLOITATION

In a scandal that has pierced the peaceful facade of SA’s wine country, Stellenbosch, a local man has been ordered by the High Court to repay nearly R1 million after years of slyly dodging rent and housing payments.
Kevin Brown, once seen as an unassuming tenant, has cunningly exploited various legal loopholes for his own benefit. Now, the Stellenbosch Regional Court and the Western Cape Division of the High Court have brought forth extensive charges against Brown, and demanded that he pay back the piper!

Brown has allegedly slipped from one home to another, paying next to nothing in rent, yet managing to stay for months – even years – while frustrated landlords watched their properties being held hostage. One of the hoodwinked homeowners, Pieter Wessels, stated that Brown used the Prevention of Illegal Eviction from an Unlawful Occupation of Land Act (PIE Act) to delay eviction proceedings, saying “Kevin managed to stay in our property for seven-and-a-half months, paying for only two months”. Another owner, Linda Schaefer, had a four-year ordeal with Brown, stating he paid only 9 times in the 44 months he occupied her property.

Unfortunately, the prevalence of manipulation tactics by renters has become increasingly apparent in recent years, and thankfully, much more visible. One such example is the Netflix documentary “Worst Roommate Ever“, which features true stories of roommates turning into living nightmares, shining light on perpetual squatters and unhinged con-artists in our modern-day society.

Closer to home, more than thirty years into our democracy, we still face an extensive economic divide. South Africa’s rental system is anchored by the Rental Housing Act. It is especially designed to provide shelter and security, but is increasingly becoming a playground for manipulation, where the rules meant to protect both tenants and landlords are easily bent – and in some cases, outrightly broken. We are seeing this not only in cases such as Kevin Brown’s, but also in Johannesburg CBD, where there is a momentous problem with hijacked buildings – referring to empty or abandoned buildings that have been illegally occupied.

Additionally, in recent years, there has been a striking proliferation in the emergence of informal settlements and squatter camps across the nation. Just last year, the Democratic Alliance (DA) scrambled to address these issues in Parliament, where they proposed new laws to permanently address unlawful land occupation across South African cities.

Ultimately, the larger bulk of the challenges around shelter in South Africa derive from a single point: our intensively violent history of apartheid, and its deep-seated remnants in our post-democratic society.

According to Stats SA’s General Household Survey, almost a quarter of the entire society pays rent. A mere 2 months ago, PayProp Rental Index indicated that the average rent in SA has surpassed R9 000 for the first time in nearly a decade.

There are a plethora of factors that contribute to the rise in renters, including flexibility, affordability, and the cost of owning property in our current economic climate. In fact, renting offers lower upfront costs, which is a viable option for the vast majority of the nation who still live below the poverty line. Although home ownership is a vastly undertaken option by South Africans, with almost 60% of the population fully or partially owning their homes, there continues to be a steady increase in the rate of renters since 2020, the year of the pandemic.

What is evident in our society, is that the enduring legacy of apartheid and systemic inequality means that many underprivileged households remain trapped in a cycle of dependency on rental housing. Historical barriers to land ownership, coupled with ongoing economic disparities, have left millions of people without the means to secure permanent homes. This is compounded by issues such as poor infrastructure, rampant crime, overcrowding, and so much more.

Unequal access to homeownership in South Africa is not just an economic issue – it is a painful legacy of apartheid-era racial discrimination, where land and housing were systematically stripped from Black South Africans. That legacy endures today, with the wealthy – still disproportionately white – enjoying easy access to property ownership, while millions of underprivileged people are forced into insecure, overcrowded, and costly rental arrangements.

One segment of our society that was not sufficiently addressed during our transition into democracy was the issue of land – an issue that continues to reverberate throughout our contemporary society. Be it the cacophony of unqualified uproars regarding the Land Expropriation Act, or the manipulations of the Constitutional protections of renters by the likes of unethical, brazen characters such as Kevin Brown, we unfortunately may be grappling with issues around housing for the foreseeable future.

What’s truly devastating about these challenges is that the majority of those who are evicted are those who deserve these legal and constitutional protections, whilst those who play the system like a fiddle, evade consequences for months – even years – at a time.

Housing issues, rooted in deep structural inequalities, are a stark reminder that the promise of democracy remains unfulfilled for many. The key government’s departments need to urgently reform legislation around housing to better protect both tenants and landlords, while severely restricting loopholes and restrictions that sabotage both of these parties.

Access to safe, affordable, and dignified shelter is not a privilege – it is a fundamental right that is bestowed by our Constitution, and must underpin a truly just and equal society. This includes protections for property owners, ensuring that their property rights are respected, but not at the expense of the broader social and economic goals of the country.

Ultimately, a snake is rearing its ugly head, and we have to swiftly address the exploitation of our system, which was meant to offer stability and equality. There are countless challenges where property is concerned, but we cannot allow it to become a free-for-all, with little regard for the law or its consequences. As strikingly said by Austrian Journalist Karl Kraus, “Corruption is worse than prostitution. The latter might endanger the morals of the individual, but the former invariably endangers the morals of the entire country.”