Betting on Zimbabwe’s next boomtowns

100

Leonita Mhishi

ON a dusty Saturday morn­ing in Ruwa, a young cou­ple stand beside a half-built house, smiling as builders lay bricks under the winter sun. A decade ago, many would have considered the area too far from Harare’s commer­cial heartbeat to be a desirable place to live. Today, that perception is rap­idly changing.

Hundreds of kilometres away in Victoria Falls, another investor is studying architectural drawings for a lodge expansion, convinced that the tourism city’s best years are still ahead. Meanwhile, in Norton, fam­ilies continue streaming into new housing developments, attracted by affordability and proximity to the capital.

The stories are different, but the underlying message is the same: Zimbabwe’s property landscape is shifting.

For years, property conversations in Zimbabwe have been dominated by familiar names such as Borrow­dale, Mount Pleasant, Avondale and Highlands. These suburbs have be­come synonymous with wealth pres­ervation and real estate investment. Yet as prices continue to rise in estab­lished markets, investors are increas­ingly searching for the next frontier.

That frontier is emerging in places that were once viewed as secondary locations but are now benefiting from changing demographics, infrastruc­ture development, tourism growth and the relentless search for afford­able housing.

Victoria Falls, Ruwa and Norton stand out as three property hotspots investors should watch closely.

The attraction of Victoria Falls is perhaps the easiest to understand. Unlike many towns that rely primar­ily on local economic activity, Victo­ria Falls enjoys a unique advantage: it sells a global product.

Every year, tourists from across the world travel to witness one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. In the first quarter of 2025 alone, the Victoria Falls Rainforest attracted more than 61 000 visitors, up from nearly 60 000 during the same peri­od in 2024, according to the Zimba­bwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority. International arrivals ac­counted for the bulk of that growth, driven by stronger demand from Eu­rope and the region. The expansion of Victoria Falls International Airport and improved regional connectivity have further strengthened the city’s appeal.

For property investors, tourists are not simply visitors. They are custom­ers.

Every tourist requires accommo­dation, transport, restaurants, enter­tainment facilities and supporting services. This creates demand for ho­tels, lodges, guesthouses, apartments and commercial developments.

Investor confidence is already visible. One of the most significant recent projects is the US$43 million Eagle Heights mixed-use develop­ment, which is expected to combine tourism, residential, healthcare and retail infrastructure. Such devel­opments demonstrate growing pri­vate-sector belief in the city’s long-term prospects.

Victoria Falls is increasingly evolving from a tourism destination into a broader investment destination.

Of course, challenges remain. En­vironmental concerns and the need to protect the World Heritage Site status of the Falls mean growth must be carefully managed. Investors can­not assume unlimited expansion. Yet that very limitation could become a source of value. Scarcity often drives property appreciation, and available land in prime tourism corridors is be­coming increasingly limited.

If Victoria Falls represents Zim­babwe’s tourism investment story, Ruwa tells a different tale — one rooted in urban expansion.

Drive through Ruwa today and it becomes immediately apparent that the town is no longer merely a dormi­tory settlement for Harare workers. It is becoming a city in its own right.

Housing developments continue to spread across former open land. New shopping centres, schools and commercial facilities are following closely behind. What is driving this growth is simple economics.

Harare has become increasingly expensive for many middle-income earners. Land and housing prices in established suburbs often place home ownership beyond the reach of young professionals and first-time buyers. As a result, many are looking eastward.

Ruwa offers a compelling prop­osition. Residents remain close enough to access employment op­portunities in Harare while benefiting from comparatively affordable prop­erty options.

This trend is being reinforced by broader urbanisation patterns. Zimbabwe continues to experience growing demand for housing, while infrastructure improvements and new residential projects are making peri-urban centres increasingly at­tractive. Industry analysts have iden­tified Ruwa as one of the country’s fastest-growing residential markets due to these factors.

Importantly, Ruwa’s appeal ex­tends beyond owner-occupiers. Di­aspora investors are also playing a significant role. Zimbabweans living abroad increasingly view property as a store of value and are actively purchasing land and residential units in emerging growth centres such as Ruwa.

For investors seeking long-term rental income or capital appreciation, that demand creates opportunities.

Then there is Norton.

For many years, Norton occupied an awkward position in Zimbabwe’s property hierarchy. It was neither ful­ly rural nor fully urban. Today, how­ever, that ambiguity is becoming one of its greatest strengths.

Located west of Harare, Norton is benefiting from many of the same forces driving growth in Ruwa. Pop­ulation expansion, rising housing de­mand and affordability concerns are pushing more families to consider areas beyond the capital’s traditional boundaries.

What makes Norton particularly interesting is its affordability relative to Harare. Many families who cannot afford properties closer to the city centre find Norton a realistic alterna­tive.

Developers have noticed.

Residential stands, housing proj­ects and commercial investments continue to emerge across the town. As road networks improve and com­muting patterns evolve, the distance between Norton and Harare becomes less of a psychological barrier and more of a manageable daily reality.

For young families, the calcula­tion is often straightforward. A larger property in Norton may cost signifi­cantly less than a smaller property within Harare’s established suburbs.

That affordability advantage mat­ters in a country where housing de­mand consistently exceeds supply.

The broader lesson for investors is that property markets rarely remain static. The areas delivering the stron­gest returns tomorrow are often those that seem unremarkable today.

Many of Zimbabwe’s most sought-after suburbs were once con­sidered peripheral locations. Bor­rowdale itself was not always the premium address it is now. Growth occurred because infrastructure, population movement and economic activity gradually transformed per­ceptions.

The same process appears to be unfolding in Victoria Falls, Ruwa and Norton.

Yet investors should avoid blind optimism. Property remains a long-term game. Success depends on understanding local dynamics, veri­fying ownership documentation and assessing infrastructure realities. Not every stand becomes a goldmine, and not every development delivers the promised returns.

Still, it is difficult to ignore the signals.

Tourism growth is creating fresh opportunities in Victoria Falls. Urban expansion is reshaping Ruwa. Hous­ing demand and affordability are driving momentum in Norton.

In each case, powerful economic forces are converging.

For ordinary Zimbabweans, these emerging hotspots represent more than investment opportunities. They represent aspirations. The dream of owning a home. The hope of build­ing wealth. The desire to secure a fu­ture in uncertain times.

As the young couple in Ruwa watch their house rise brick by brick, they are not thinking about property cycles, urbanisation trends or invest­ment yields.

They are simply building a future.

Sometimes, that future becomes the strongest signal investors can fol­low.

l Mhishi is the principal registered estate agent at House of Stone Properties and can be reached at +263 772 329 569 or via email at leonita@hsp.