A Place Called Home: Backyarding in the City of Cape Town

The concept of adequate housing translates to various components of housing such as security of tenure, good locations, affordability and access to municipal infrastructure, social and educational facilities as well as providing shelter. Low cost to affordable housing in South Africa has been located at the urban periphery, at low densities and far away from economic opportunities. The emergence of backyard rental units has provided a panacea for some of these challenges but not without setbacks. While backyarding is a land-use practice, it has struggled to gain recognition in land-use policy, hindering the development of formal backyard rental units to satisfy adequate housing standards. The paper seeks to investigate the provision of housing and adequate housing through land-use management lenses, looking at how both housing and planning policies facilitate the development of backyard rental units in Cape Town. The paper employs a case study framework as a methodological stance. Five case studies of backyard dwelling units were selected from two residential areas in the City of Cape Town (Delft and Langa). Semi-structured interviews involving eleven respondents involved in the regulation, development and financing of housing and backyard dwellings. A thematic data analysis strategy was used for data analysis. The paper adopts a theoretical approach through the review of literature. The study found that both the land-use and housing policies have lagged and acted as barriers in providing an environment conducive to developing backyard rental units. This has been displayed by the high development charges, restrictive bylaws and lack of financial support for bulk infrastructure upgrades. Despite its contribution to affordable housing, the lack of policy recognition of backyard rental units compromises the provision of adequate housing. The study provides significant insights into the complex landscape of backyard rental units in Cape Town, identifying key obstacles in the provision of quality, affordable rental housing.