Getting a mortgage in South Africa is becoming as straightforward as an online shopping experience, thanks to a shift towards digital platforms. This trend is streamlining the traditionally long, complex, and paperwork-heavy process, making it more accessible to consumers. The most recent example of this shift is Takealot’s new Home Loan Hub. Launched in partnership with MortgageMarket, an online home loan marketplace, the service saw remarkable initial success, with over 1,000 applications in just the first 48 hours. This indicates a strong consumer appetite for digital home financing solutions.
This move places Takealot alongside a growing list of digital platforms, including MTN, EasyEquities, and BetterBond, that are disrupting the traditional mortgage industry by allowing South Africans to secure home financing without needing to visit bank branches or work with brokers.
Takealot’s new platform is designed to simplify the entire mortgage application process. With a single digital application, users can:
- Receive instant pre-approval insights without negatively affecting their credit score.
- Easily compare loan offers from major South African banks, including Absa, FNB, Investec, RMB, and Standard Bank.
- Get official loan proposals within a remarkable 72 hours.
The platform also includes a unique incentive: successful applicants receive up to R20,000 (over $1,100) in Takealot vouchers once their bond is registered. This strategy, which mirrors the “bundling” tactics used in e-commerce, is designed to enhance customer loyalty and encourage further engagement with the platform.
According to Michael Jordan, a chartered enterprise risk analyst, this is a “smart move” for Takealot, which can leverage its existing customer data to help assess credit risk. He believes the venture will be a success and anticipates the platform may even expand into insurance in the future.
Davison Mudzingwa, a business analyst, agrees, noting that using an e-commerce platform for home loans accelerates the application and approval process. He hopes this ease of access will boost activity within the property and long-term loan markets.
This digital push comes at a time when the South African housing market is showing signs of recovery from high interest rates and post-pandemic economic stress. The recovery is largely being driven by first-time buyers, who accounted for nearly 53% of all applicants in the first quarter of 2025, according to Absa’s Homeowner Sentiment Index.
The impact of digital platforms is already visible. For example, BetterBond reported an 8.2% increase in loan approvals in the 12 months leading up to March 2025, compared to the same period the previous year.
Takealot’s venture is part of a broader trend of digital platforms expanding into lifestyle services. Driven by the surge in internet and mobile use, companies like Nedbank’s Avo are creating “super apps” that bundle banking, shopping, and other services into a single digital interface. For younger, tech-savvy consumers, the ability to manage complex applications online without constant bank visits is a major improvement. Analysts believe that technology-driven distribution channels are perfectly positioned to capitalize on this consumer demand.
As Mudzingwa aptly puts it, “If getting a mortgage can be as seamless as buying a fridge, more people might finally buy both.” This development highlights how technology can act as a powerful enabler, breaking down barriers for both businesses and consumers.
