At the far end of Roodepoort, just before you hit Krugersdorp is a little suburb called Witpootjie. Bordered in the north by Ontdekkers and Main Reef Roads and in the south by Randfontein Road, it is a classic example of the stereotypical west Rand suburb.
The houses here are not flashy, more often than not they only have a single bathroom, but also have large gardens and the verges on the average street are extra wide. Although there are less trees than you would find in the northern suburbs the grassy verges give the suburb a park-like feel.
Estate agents like to divide the suburb into upper and lower Witpoortjie with the better section being Upper Witpoortjie. This section is closer to Ontdekkers Road but, more importantly, further away from Randfontein Road and the informal settlements that are just a kilometre or so down the road. The houses in lower Witpoortjie tend to be slightly less well maintained and for buyers looking for a bargain it might be a good place to start.
The average freehold selling price for the past 12 months was R643 000, a level that it has hovered around for the past five years. This would indicate that the market has decided that the R600 000 to R700 000 bracket is where fair value is in the suburb and while this might be good news for buyers, it is going to turn off any people looking towards buying a property in the suburb as an investment. During the past 12 months 140 freehold properties changed hands with 109 priced between R400 000 and R800 000 and 18 between R800 000 and R1.5 million.
The suburb does, however, have a large group of stable owners with more than 40 percent of owners having been in the suburb for 11 years or more. Recent purchasing trends seem to indicate a influx of younger buyers into the suburb with almost 40 percent of new buyers between the ages of 18 and 35.
The position of the suburb makes it easy to get to shopping and entertainment facilities on the west rand with Princess Crossing close and Westgate just a bit further away. The CBD of Krugersdorp is also just a short drive and Silverstar Casino is at the bottom of Krugersdorp hill within easy driving distance.
The suburb also has both English and Afrikaans primary schools with Laerskool Dr Havinga, Princess Primary School and Laerskool Roodebeeck within a kilometre or less of the suburb. There are also a number of English and Afrikaans high schools in the area or within easy driving distance. Although the area is not served all that well by private schools there are a number of them within easy driving distance including those in Ruimsig, Discovery and Krugersdorp.
