Nox Cape Town is a leading vacation rental property manager and estate agency located in Camps Bay, Cape Town. Founded by Richard Marshall in 2004, Nox has been awarded the Altos Award for Best Hospitality Operator in Africa and the Middle East, which affirms the company’s expertise in the short and extended-stay rental market. JANE MAYNE spoke to him about property investment, potential new tax laws for short-term rentals, and much more.
Nox Cape Town manages assets totalling approximately ZAR2.5 billion – is this primarily serving foreign investors seeking rental yields through short-term letting?
While we do have some foreign buyers who are investment-focused, the majority of our yield-driven investors are actually domestic. Most of our international clients view their Cape Town properties as lifestyle assets — they typically use them personally for holidays, and many intend to retire here. These clients rely on short-term rentals to help defray ownership costs and ensure the property is well-maintained in their absence.
That said, we are seeing a growing number of international investors who are recognising the long-term potential of Cape Town and are starting to view it as a pure investment destination as well.
Can you comment on exorbitant property price increases, and do you think Atlantic Seaboard property rentals will ever hit a ceiling?
In Cape Town as a whole, the median property price has increased at an annualised rate of 11.6% over the past five years. It is substantially more than the inflation rate.
However, if you drill down, you get a different picture. The median price of full title homes in Camps Bay went up 14% between 2019 and 2024, which is an annualised increase of just 2.6% (which is well below the 5% inflation rate).
Having said that, the maximum price paid for a property in Camps Bay in 2019 was R36m, versus R82m last year. I believe that ceiling will continue to rise, as more HNW international visitors recognise Cape Town for the exceptional destination that it is.
The lack of properties obviously increases demand and pushes prices up – local buyers must find it hard to keep up?
I think that the property market works well, but due to the nature of property development, there can be a significant lag in matching supply and demand. Having said that, we have already seen that short-term rental returns have
In terms of home owners, investors, renters and vacationers, which suburbs have the most appeal for each segment?
For foreign buyers we find that Camps Bay has a special cachet, as does the V&A Waterfront. Camps Bay also has a well-established short-term rental market, and it is where we are best represented, so from our perspective it is definitely our top market.
How will potential new tax laws affect short-term letting?
At this stage, several regulatory changes are on the horizon for short-term rentals (STRs). The first is the potential national regulation mentioned in the Department of Tourism’s White Paper, which suggests greater oversight of STRs. The second is a recent comment by Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, advocating for an “equal playing field” in the accommodation sector.
I support responsible regulation that creates fairness and stability in the industry. When implemented correctly, regulation gives businesses and investors confidence to continue growing this critical segment of South Africa’s tourism economy.
Nox Cape Town Founder and Owner, Richard Marshall
A key debate is whether STRs should pay commercial rates instead of residential rates. There is logic in this, particularly for full-time short-term rental properties operating similarly to hotels. However, over-regulation risks stifling an industry that contributes significantly to tourism and employment. Guest reviews already provide strong quality assurance, making additional layers of compliance unnecessary.
Regulation should be handled at the most local level possible. Many Sectional Title Schemes and Homeowners’ Associations (HOAs) already impose their own rules on short-term letting. It makes sense for municipalities—who understand their own local dynamics—to set regulations that reflect the needs of their communities, rather than enforcing broad, one-size-fits-all national policies.
A critical concern is that some international markets have imposed severe restrictions, such as outright bans or caps limiting STRs to 30 days per year. However, we can learn from their mistakes: these measures have generally failed to lower housing costs but have harmed local tourism economies.
In South Africa, STRs play a vital role in our tourism industry by providing diverse accommodation options that attract both domestic and international visitors. According to Airbnb’s 2022 report, the platform alone contributed R23.5 billion to South Africa’s economy and supported almost 50,000 jobs.
The STR sector employs thousands of people directly and supports many more indirectly—from cleaners and property managers to local businesses benefiting from increased tourism spend.
Despite its size and economic impact, the STR industry lacks a unified voice, making it vulnerable to restrictive policies driven by narrow interests. This is why we have been involved in founding the South African Short-Term Rentals Association (SASTRA)—to advocate for fair regulation that protects both tourism growth and property rights while ensuring responsible, sustainable industry practices.
South Africa has a unique opportunity to implement balanced, locally driven regulation that supports tourism while addressing legitimate concerns. Rather than crippling the STR sector with unnecessary red tape, we should focus on smart, pragmatic policies that allow STRs to thrive alongside traditional accommodation providers. By learning from international examples, ensuring local input, and protecting investment in the industry, we can continue leveraging STRs as a key driver of economic growth and job creation.
With 20+ years of experience in short term rentals and property management, guests are reaping the benefits of your service – what do you contribute most overall?
Short-term rentals is a simple business that is difficult to execute well consistently and at scale. Our core mission is to ensure that guests have the best possible experience of Cape Town, and that property owners have the best possible experience of home ownership.
We have spent over 20 years in building systems and processes to ensure that.
How do you help landlords to increase occupancy and maximise rental returns?
At the core of revenue generation is happy guests, and that is predicated on clean and well-maintained properties, and a good hospitality offering. So that is the core that we focus on.
Beyond that, there are two primary aspects to revenue generation. These are pricing and distribution. In terms of distribution, we ensure our clients’ properties are listed on all of the primary platforms. We also actively market our properties to a large network of tour operators and travel agents, and regularly attend international trade shows. Our own site is also a large driver of direct bookings.
In terms of pricing, the price of a property is obviously enormously important in determining its rental yield. Having said that, last night’s stock is worthless, so ensuring high occupancy is very important. We reprice every property every day, to ensure that we are doing our best to match our prices to the market, and to maximise our properties’ revenue.
Property investment vs stock exchange investment – what are the pros and cons?
I firmly believe in diversification; both property and stock market investments have their place in a well-balanced portfolio. That said, they are fundamentally different asset classes.
What makes property’s investment great is the ability to use borrowed money (mortgages), which can significantly amplify returns. Having said that, property investment requires a significant time investment in terms of finding the right investment, and then ongoing attention to ensure that the investment is being cared for, and continues to generate its best possible return. It’s also a very illiquid asset, and it can be very painful if you are forced to exit an investment at the wrong time.
Stocks offer true passive investing, requiring little to no effort beyond initial allocation and periodic rebalancing. You can get exposure to every market and sector, locally and globally, and are able to enter and exit investments at any time.
Personally, I love property and I love having a vision for a property and being able to execute it, but I still put a good chunk of my savings into boring ETFs.
How does tech enable you to deliver a 24-hour service?
One of the biggest challenges with short-term rentals is that is it a 24 hour a day, 365 day a year business. As a result we have to make sure we have staff available to attend to check-ins, check-outs, and any potential problems all the time.
We use technology to assist us wherever possible; we have an customer service AI client that is the first line response for guests after hours, before escalating items to our team. We also use other technologies, like noise monitoring devices in the properties, to ensure that we can pick up on any issues as they occur, and respond proactively, rather than reacting later.
How accurate are your performance projections of investor returns?
The market is quite fluid, and we can see some material changes from one year to the next, but typically we are able to predict a properties income accurately; usually within 5% to 10%.
Find out more about Nox Cape Town here.
