At the recent International Property Awards – Africa Chapter ceremony, held at the lavish London Marriott Hotel Grosvenor Square on 23 October 2025, Waterfall City Management Company received the Best Masterplan South Africa award for Waterfall City for the second consecutive year, recognising the pioneering urban design framework guiding the development of this thriving smart city in the heart of Gauteng. The Masterplan category was specially created in 2024 by the International Property Awards association for large-scale developments covering a minimum of 20,000m2 and including at least five of the following uses: residential, retail, commercial, leisure, cultural, institutional, public service and industrial.
In addition to this prestigious accolade, Waterfall City received a nomination for the Best Masterplan Africa award, which the development also won earlier this year, and was furthermore named as an Award Winner in the Sustainable Residential Development South Africa 2025-2026 category for the Waterfall Country and Country Village Estates.
What’s more, Willie Vos, CEO of Waterfall City Management Company, was honoured with a Special International Property Award for Real Estate Leadership. With 30+ years’ experience in real estate, property and asset management, Vos is a visionary leader who has managed Waterfall City's evolution from a R3bn municipal asset in 2004, to Africa’s premier mixed-use smart city, valued at R65bn and admired for its safety, sustainability and liveability. His imagineering of Waterbucks, the world’s first geographically bound smart-city rewards programme, due to launch early next year, cements his reputation as an innovator and change-maker in the property sector.
The International Property Awards are the largest, most prestigious and widely recognised property awards programme globally. Now in their 32nd year, the awards cover over 50 different residential and commercial categories, judged by an independent panel of over 100 industry experts, and chaired by House of Lords members. Judging focuses on design, quality, service, innovation, originality, and commitment to sustainability and regional heats are staged for Africa, Arabia, Europe, Canada, Central & South America, the Caribbean, USA, UK and Asia Pacific.
The highest scoring, five-star regional winners from each category in Africa will automatically be put forward for re-judging against the five-star winners in the other regions of the world. Following this re-assessment, the 2026 International winners in each category will be identified as the ‘World’s Best’. These winners will be announced at a glittering awards ceremony planned for February next year.
Reflecting on this honour, Willie Vos said; “After winning the first-ever World’s Best Masterplan title earlier this year, we are thrilled to be in the running for this award again, having retained our Best Masterplan South Africa status. This recognition highlights the considerable efforts we put into the careful planning of the key urban design aspects of Waterfall City’s blueprint and showcases the success of our innovative thinking and human-centric design. On a personal level, I am humbled to have been honoured with the Real Estate Leadership award, a true milestone in my career. All these accolades reassure us that we are on track to realise our vision for Waterfall City: a smart city so admired, safe and sustainable, there is no better place to live, work, play and prosper. Kudos to my team and to all our partners and stakeholders on another remarkable achievement.”
