According to reports, South African billionaire Patrice Motsepe has bought the luxury wine farm Hidden Valley on the slopes of the Helderberg.
Nestled on the picturesque slopes of the Helderberg and situated halfway between Stellenbosch and Somerset West, Hidden Valley is a picturesque wine farm with sprawling vineyards, olive trees, and even a bush lodge.
The area surrounding Hidden Valley is not called the "golden triangle" for no reason - you can expect to pay top dollar for your piece of farmland in this sought-after region.
Jean Engelbrecht, of Rust en Vrede Estate, has been quoted as saying that he heard that the farm was on the market for R160 million "but that the old people always said there is an asking price and a selling price."
Others believe that the billionaire probably paid between R100 million and R120 million for the 28-hectare farm. Even if he did buy the property below the asking price, it is still far more than what Riaan Stassen, the founder and former chairperson of Capitec, paid for it in 2015. Back then, Stassen bought the farm for R54.5 million.
Motsepe already has some prime South African real estate in his portfolio including, a mansion in the millionaires' neighbourhood of Bishopscourt, Cape Town, and a 20% share in the exclusive Val De Vie residential estate just outside of Paarl.
Until now, neither Motsepe nor Clarence Collins of Pam Golding Properties, the real estate agent who allegedly concluded the massive transaction, have confirmed whether or not Motsepe was the buyer.
For now, however, the region and its residents are left to wonder and talk about the prospect of having this exciting new addition to their valley.
