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What's it like to live here?

Matroosfontein is a neighbourhood in Cape Flats, Cape Town, where property values place it among the more affordable areas in Cape Town. The area's safety profile is below the city average for reported safety. There are several places of worship in the area. The dominant commuter mode is private vehicle.

How is the area changing?

In Matroosfontein, crime is rising based on the most recent quarterly comparison. Property value growth has lagged behind inflation between valuation rolls.

What should buyers know?

Matroosfontein is served by schools within reach. In this area, service complaints are generally resolved within a few days. The suburb is well-served by nearby healthcare facilities.

Neighbourhood summary generated from StreetSignal data and reviewed by our team.

These statistics describe the suburb as a whole. Conditions vary between streets and neighbourhoods within any suburb.

For home buyers & families

Is Matroosfontein safe?

Moderate reported crime

95th percentile among 744 suburbs · based on precinct-level data shared with 15 suburbs · Data: Q4 2025/2026 (Jan–Mar 2026) · relative index, not an absolute safety measure

HighAbsolute crime volume
5 744 reported crimes per year · city median: 4 280
↑ 14.5% vs Q3 2024
A middle-of-the-range area where crime has been increasing over the past year. Contact crime (assault, robbery) dominates the reported crime profile. Review the breakdown below for a clearer picture.

Detailed data

Safety index (resident-adjusted) How is this calculated?
36 / 100
Contact crime rate
626,167 per 100k residents
Station population
88 562
Harm rate (per resident)
26/100
Harm volume (absolute)
50/100
Data period
Q4 2025/2026 (Jan–Mar 2026)
Source
SAPS via DataFirst · CC-BY 4.0

This data reflects crimes reported to SAPS Elsies River precinct, which covers Matroosfontein and surrounding suburbs. Reported crime may differ from actual crime levels.Full methodology

Disagree with this score? Challenge the methodology ›

Source: SAPS via DataFirst · Q4 2025/2026

FOR BUYERS & INVESTORS

What do properties cost in Matroosfontein?

23rd percentile

The median property value in Matroosfontein is R730K. Property values have grown by 2.9% per year since 2018.

A 2.9% annual growth rate (CAGR) over the valuation period.
Value band distribution – Matroosfontein properties (GV2022)

Property values are based on the City of Cape Town's 2022 General Valuation roll. GV is an assessed value for municipal rating purposes; transaction prices frequently exceed GV. Recent sales transaction data and rental market data are not available as open data in South Africa.

Median GV2022
R730,000
Value growth (CAGR 2018–2022)
+2.9% per year
City-wide value percentile
23rd percentile
Dominant value band
6-800k
Source
CCT GV 2022 · Open Data Policy 27781
Vintage
General Valuation 2022 (municipal valuation, not current market price)

Source: City of Cape Town GV2022

FOR RESIDENTS

What do utilities cost in Matroosfontein?

Computed from City of Cape Town billing data
Water
R393 / month
40% below city median
Electricity
This area is supplied by Eskom. City of Cape Town electricity billing data is not available.
Water trend:Dec 2025: R516Jan 2026: R355Feb 2026: R393

Monthly cost per account from City of Cape Town billing data. Water coverage: 647 suburbs. Electricity coverage: 384 suburbs.

INVESTMENT ACTIVITY

Development activity in Matroosfontein

↓ Decreasing

Matroosfontein had 22 building plans approved in the last three financial years (FY22/23 to FY24/25), averaging 7 per year. Most were renovations and extensions.

3-year approvals
22
Annual average
7/yr
Avg project value
R543K

Building plans approved by the City of Cape Town (2014-2025). Approvals indicate planned investment, not completed construction. This data reflects formal building activity only and does not capture informal construction, backyard dwellings, or building work undertaken without a formal plan submission. In areas with high informality, actual construction activity may be substantially higher than these figures suggest. Source: CoCT Building Development Management (DAMS).

FOR PARENTS

How are schools in Matroosfontein?

2 schools nearby

Matroosfontein has 2 schools within reach. Schools include Elsbury Primary School.

Matric results: pass rate data currently covers 157 of 744 suburbs.Matroosfontein will surface when DBE suburb-level data is processed in the next pipeline run. About coverage ›
  • Q4
    Elsbury Primary School
    Public · Grades R–7 · 475 learners · 31.7:1 learner-educator ratio
  • Q4
    Matroosfontein Primary School
    Public · Grades R–7 · 399 learners · 23.5:1 learner-educator ratio
    Favourable class size

Quintile 5 is the highest government-funding category - fees apply, but these are the best-resourced public schools in South Africa. Rankings set by the WCED against community socioeconomic index. Learner-educator ratio (LER) is from EMIS Q2 2025; under 30:1 is favourable by WCED standards, over 40:1 indicates strained capacity. What quintile means ›

Source: DBE EMIS · Q2 2025

FOR COMMUTERS

How connected is Matroosfontein?

Vehicle-led mix

Matroosfontein has 6 minibus taxi routes. The most common way people get to work is by private vehicle (46%).

Taxi connectivityRanks this suburb's taxi route access against all 744 Cape Town suburbs. Based on routes matched by name and within 500m of suburb centre. Large suburbs may have higher actual connectivity than shown.Full methodology ›

Limited connectivity
6 routes
28th percentile · 6 destinations
Delft south, Elsies river, Epping (via 35th street & owen road), Epping 2, Matroosfontein, Red cross hospital
Based on CCT minibus taxi route data. Routes matched by name and spatial proximity (500m). Methodology ›

Commute mode share

A mixed transport profile. Multiple modes serve Matroosfontein – consider proximity to work when evaluating.
Private vehicle
46%
Walking
6%
MyCiTi bus
14%
Minibus taxi
32%
Cape Town transport context: In South African cities, transport mode is a socioeconomic proxy – high private vehicle = affluent, high minibus taxi = working class, high walking = structural necessity not preference. StreetSignal reports modal share rather than a walkability index, which would misrepresent SA urban mobility. Methodology ›
Dominant mode
Private vehicle (46%)
Source
CCT Household Survey 2024

Source: City of Cape Town Open Data · 2024

FOR RESIDENTS

What are living conditions in Matroosfontein?

Partial service delivery

Matroosfontein has a service delivery index of 95 out of 100, above the city median of 84.5. 74% of dwellings are formal structures.

Computed from the City of Cape Town 2024 Household Survey, Elsies River survey group (57 households). Indicative: nearest survey group used.

› Monthly accommodation expenditure (R626) is 0.4× the city median of R1,674.

Access to basic services

95City median: 85
Piped water
93.9%
Flush toilet
88.3%
Weekly refuse
100.0%
Grid electricity
97.3%

Housing & tenure – Mixed tenure community

74City median: 68
Formal dwellings
74.0%
Owner-occupied
68.0%
Rented
15.9%

Environmental risk – Moderate risk exposure

19risk index · higher = greater risk · City median: 26
Flooding risk
9.4%
Fire risk
1.8%
Violent crime
3.0%
Non-violent crime
4.9%

Economic structure – Moderate material pressure

Food spending share
42.8%
Share of income spent on food
City median: 35.3%
Under pressure, limited discretionary income · 36th percentile
Hardship dimensions
1
Areas of material need (out of 8)
Grant income share
46.0%
of households receiving grants

Digital inclusion – Mixed-access suburb

Home fibre
43.6%
City median: 46.5%
Mobile only
34.4%
No access
18.1%

Food security

Adult food insecurity
11.3%
City median: 18.3%
Child food insecurity
11.8%
City median: 13.0%
Food insecurity prevalence
9.7%
City median: 22.3%

Demographics & community

Avg household size
3.7 people
Avg children per household
1.1

Asset ownership

Computer access
37.5%
Fridge ownership
89.8%
Property ownership
0.0%
Geyser ownership
59.7%
Borehole access
11.0%

Home-based economy

Home-based business
4.0%
of households operate a home-based business
WFH full-time
0.7%

Source: City of Cape Town 2024 Household Survey. Survey group: Elsies River. Indicative: nearest survey group used.

Source: City of Cape Town household survey · 2024

FOR RESIDENTS

How responsive are municipal services in Matroosfontein?

Responsive

The City of Cape Town resolves service requests in Matroosfontein in a median of 2 days, compared to the city-wide median of 1 day. This is based on 2,222 service requests to the City of Cape Town.

Computed from City of Cape Town service request data
Below-average municipal responsiveness. A 2-day median resolution is slower than the city median – infrastructure complaints take meaningfully longer to resolve.
2
Median days to resolve
City median: 1
34th
Percentile
across Cape Town
24%
Resolved
same day
Sewerage overflow (16%)Water leak (11%)Customer : Reconnection Request (5%)Street lights out (5%)Leak at meter/stopcock 20mm below (5%)
Service requests logged
2 222
Requests resolved
72% (1 591 of 2 222)
75% resolved within
6 days
90% resolved within
18 days
Source
CCT service request database
Community & faith

Places of worship

4 registered
Christian
4

Places of worship per suburb from City of Cape Town open data, supplemented with OpenStreetMap data (© OpenStreetMap contributors). Coverage: 373 of 744 suburbs.

Municipal complaints

Complaints & top issues

Below city average
Complaint rate How is this calculated?
362.9 per 1,000 households
Total complaints
2 196
Unresolved
28.0%

Top issues: Sewerage overflow (356), Water leak (236), Customer : Reconnection Request (117)

Source: City of Cape Town C3 service requests

MUNICIPAL FINANCE

Municipal debt in Matroosfontein

17% above city median
Computed from City of Cape Town financial data

Municipal debt in Matroosfontein averages R10 295 per account, compared to the city median of R8 815.

R10 295
per account
17% above city median
Trend:Mar 2026: R10 270Apr 2026: R10 310May 2026: R10 295
Breakdown as of May 2026
Property rates
R1 106 027
Electricity
R0
Water
R3 704 287
Refuse
R1 123 199
Sewerage
R1 604 588
City-wide cleaning
R18 106
Improvement district
R0

Outstanding municipal arrears from City of Cape Town financial records. Coverage: 741 suburbs. Per-account figures available for 582 suburbs.

FOR FAMILIES

What services are near Matroosfontein?

Well served

Healthcare access

18 within 5km
Nearest public
Elsies River Clinic · Community Day Centre · 1.2 km
Nearest private
Melomed Gatesville · Private Hospital · 5 km
Public facilities
17
Private facilities
1

This suburb has access to both public and private healthcare within 5 km.

The nearest fire station to Matroosfontein is Epping, 3.0 km away. The nearest public pool is Elsies River Swimming Pool, 1.3 km away. The nearest clinic is Elsies River Clinic, 1.2 km away.

Nearest clinic
Elsies River Clinic · 1.2 km
Nearest library
Adriaanse · 1.2 km
Nearest park / open space
Fountain Park · 0.02 km

Fire station

3
km to nearest
fire station
Epping
community station
within-5km
response
category

Cape Town has 32 fire stations serving 744 suburbs. Source: CCT open data.

Public swimming pools

1.3
km to nearest
public pool
8
pools
within 5 km
19
pools
within 10 km
Nearest pool
Elsies River Swimming Pool

Cape Town operates 35 public swimming pools. Source: CCT open data.

Distances straight-line from suburb centroid.

Source: City of Cape Town facility registry

Nearby suburbs

The Range661m · R640K
40
Clarkes Estate826m · R550K
33
Elnor879m · R800K
30
Kalksteenfontein1.2km · R440K
40
Bishop Lavis1.3km · R430K
28
Explore surrounding areas

Bordering suburbs

4 adjacent

Suburbs that border or sit adjacent to Matroosfontein. Each has its own safety profile, property market, and service data.

Data as of: Safety: Q4 2025/2026 | Property: GV2022 | Schools: EMIS Q2 2025 | Household: CCT Survey Feb-Oct 2024 | Facilities: March 2026 | Water billing: Dec 2020 - Feb 2026 | Municipal arrears: Jan 2025 - May 2026

Next refresh: when SAPS publishes Q1 2026/2027 (typically about 3 months after the period closes).

Data sources & legal attribution
SAPS Crime StatsCCT Open DataStats SADBE SchoolsCCT Household SurveyCCT Service Requests

South African Police Service, via DataFirst (UCT). SAPS crime statistics, 2019-2026 [dataset]. DOI: 10.25828/5MAW-4H90. CC-BY 4.0.

City of Cape Town. City of Cape Town open data, 2022–2025 [dataset]. CCT Open Data Policy 27781.

Statistics South Africa. Stats SA Census 2022, 2022 [dataset]. Stats SA standard terms (permissive). Analysis is the user's own and not endorsed by Stats SA.

Department of Basic Education, EMIS (Western Cape Q2 2025; Gauteng Q3 2025). DBE EMIS masterlist and public school data, 2023-2025 [dataset]. Source. CC-BY 4.0.

City of Cape Town. CCT Household Survey 2024, 2024 [dataset]. CCT Open Data Policy 27781.

City of Cape Town. CCT Service Requests (C3), 2025–2026 [dataset]. CCT Open Data Policy 27781.

Spot an error or have a correction? Email [email protected].

Building on this data? Access all 744 suburbs via the free REST API or explore commercial access.

This map is available on desktop browsers. For assistance interpreting location data, email usor visit the data sources page.