Joburg’s abandoned elders — inside the City’s failing old-age home system

The City of Joburg has lost operational and financial control of its 39 municipally owned old-age homes. With fewer than one in five residents paying rent, there are a large number of units standing empty because they are uninhabitable. The maintenance backlog is so severe that the City estimates it needs R87.7-million just to rehabilitate less than half of the portfolio it has audited so far.

At the same time, thousands of elderly residents remain stuck on waiting lists while some blocks in these homes stand partially vacant because ceilings are collapsing, toilets don’t function and electrical and plumbing systems are failing.

A Daily Maverick investigation across multiple facilities found residents living in deteriorating, squalid conditions: peeling ceilings, broken toilets, non-functioning geysers, cracked exterior walls, missing taps, falling light fittings and severe delays in basic repairs. Residents consistently blamed absent management, lack of supervision and a system where “no one is in charge and no one responds”.

The City, however, insists that its hands are tied.

“The Department has a large housing stock portfolio with incredibly low rental collection rates which further hamper its ability to effect proactive maintenance,” said Penwell Dlamini, spokesperson for the City’s Department of Human Settlements.

“The City is also heavily burdened by electricity and water costs, which it must cover monthly. Furthermore, the budget for repairs and maintenance is incredibly limited and must be spread across the different regions, which only allows the City to attend to emergency repairs and maintenance.”

Dlamini said only 19.31% of residents across the 39 homes are paying rent in full and on time.

In September 2025, the City billed R550,431.92 in rentals and added R321,193.34 in interest on arrears. But after adjustments for bad debt and write-offs, the City recorded a net negative collection of R168,314, he said.

In total, nearly R872,000 was billed, but less than a fifth made it into municipal coffers.

Despite this, old-age home tariffs remain extremely low – R217 per month for a single unit and R435 for a double – levels unchanged for years. Even if every resident paid, the City would collect only about R880,000 per month, barely covering electricity and water.

With compliance at 19%, revenue actually stands at about R170,000 per month, far below operational needs.

Residents across facilities told Daily Maverick that their homes feel leaderless and unmanaged.

“We have not lost control,” says the City, although it acknowledges illegal occupation.

“There are a few units where tenants are living with their children or relatives, which we deem as illegal occupants, and we are in the process of getting them evicted through appointed attorneys after an audit was done. We have started the process of getting these illegal occupants removed and non-qualifiers placed elsewhere.”

No dedicated budget

The City admits that old-age homes do not have their own ring-fenced maintenance budget. They fall under a “consolidated budget for council-owned stock”, which includes flats and hostels, all competing for the same limited funds.

Dlamini said consultants appointed by the City conducted condition assessments at 18 facilities and found: “The Department would require R87,709,688.17 to fully rehabilitate the 18 facilities which formed part of their scope.”

That figure accounts for less than half the old-age home portfolio.

Residents speak

Ward 57 councillor Faeeza Chame (Regents Park/Moffat View) said conditions are “unacceptable”.

“There are leaking toilets, collapsing roofs, staff doing what they want, working only a few hours unsupervised each day, broken geysers, peeling paint all over, and broken light fittings. Repairs take months; the council seldom responds.”

She said empty units cannot be occupied because they are unsafe, leaving elderly applicants on waiting lists for years.

“We cannot put new residents into collapsed units, so they remain empty while there are people who are homeless,” she added.

At Moffat View Retirement Village, resident Abbayi Naidoo has become the self-appointed repairman.

“I live here. I don’t get paid, but I help residents with basic maintenance where I can. The council never sends us help.”

Paulina Mbatha (75) has lived with her two grandchildren, now eight and 18, in the retirement home since birth after their mother abandoned them.

“I live on a Sassa grant. It does not cover the cost of two children. Their mother has disappeared. I don’t know where I will go if they put us out. I need help very badly,” she said, holding back tears.

She recently received a lawyer’s letter giving her 30 days to remove her “illegal occupants”.

At Northam Place Retirement Village in South Hills, Drika Haywood (74) said her geyser has been broken for more than a year.

“I wash with cold water every day. Once a week, I go to a neighbour with a working geyser to shower. We have shared bathroom facilities here and one of the toilet bowls has a hole in it after someone chased a rat out with some instrument. It has never been fixed so we can’t use it anymore, leaving us with one less toilet to use. My light fitting is broken. Rats run around. It is not ideal. My brother came in to paint my ceiling, which was peeling badly,” she said.

At De Wetshof Retirement Village, a ceiling collapsed two months ago onto a resident watching television.

Residents’ spokesperson Mona Dennyson said they had warned the City repeatedly: “We complained for 10 months and nothing was done. Luckily, the lady was not injured, but her children had to fetch her as she could not sleep there.”

Dennyson said the environment is unsafe:

“There are elderly residents living with drug-addicted children. They bring their friends, who rob us, the old people who have very little anyway. Security does nothing. Anyone is allowed in. There is only one working outside light, making it easy for thieves and dangerous for us to walk.”

City promises ‘new billing system’, but no details

The City says it is trying to turn the situation around.

“We are currently in the process of implementing new measures and a billing system which we believe will improve payment compliance,” Dlamini said.

No roll-out date, details or recovery strategy were provided. Finance officials offered no further clarification.

The human toll

Behind these doors are elderly residents living in fear: fear of collapse, fear of crime, fear of cold water and broken toilets, fear of eviction, and fear of being forgotten.

The City may not officially acknowledge it has lost control, but the buildings, and those trapped inside them, tell a different story. DM