Urban economics for real decisions
Citycentric is the independent practice of Claus Rabe, a culmination of two decades of applied urban economics work across scale and context. Citycentric exists for a single purpose: to give decision-makers clearer, evidence-led insight into how precincts, cities and regions function, and the tools to effect change over time.
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Analysis is grounded in the real behaviour of households, firms, and public sector institutions, and the markets through which they interact. By harnessing and triangulating administrative, remote sensing, and third-party data, Claus builds bespoke but tractable models that illuminate causal mechanisms, spatial dynamics and the trade-offs that shape long-term outcomes in land, housing, transport and labour markets.
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By integrating spatial and economic processes, Citycentric supports planning, investment and policy decisions with analysis that is rigorous, transparent and directly tied to the practical choices facing public and private actors.
Capabilities
Urban Economic Modelling & Forecasting
We use data-driven models to explain how cities grow and change, and to forecast future trends in housing, jobs, transport, and land use. Our insights help you make informed decisions and plan confidently for a resilient, future-ready city.
Decision-Support Tools & Spatial Diagnostics
We design and build clear, data-driven tools that help you understand complex spatial patterns and make confident decisions. By analysing location-based data, we identify trends, opportunities, and risks across urban systems.
Feasibility & Investment Analysis
We assess the viability and performance of urban projects using rigorous economic and financial analysis. By evaluating costs, benefits, risks, and market conditions, we provide clear insights into project potential and investment outcomes.
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Urban Policy Analysis
& Applied Research
We examine how policies shape urban systems and use evidence-based research to evaluate their impacts. By analysing data, regulatory contexts, and real-world outcomes, we generate insights that inform better policy design and implementation.
About Claus
Citycentric is an advisory practice led by Claus Rabe, an urban economist and city analyst. He is an associate and former director of Palmer Development Group, a consulting firm established in 1991.
After completing his Master’s at UCT and criss-crossing South Africa as development consultant, Claus received a distinction from TU-Berlin for his thesis on urban safety. Claus joined the City of Cape Town’s Growth Management Unit in 2011, where he received multiple awards for pioneering work on data-driven nodal diagnostics. In 2017, Claus established an Urban Economies practice area at PDG and was appointed director in 2020, a role he held until 2025.
Alongside his applied work, Claus has published dozens of research papers and gives occasional lectures to local and international urban development students.
Drawing on two decades of experience across government, consulting and academic research, Claus brings a hands-on, evidence-led approach to advisory work, focusing on bespoke analytical tools that are innovative and pragmatic, using best-in-class methods.
Outside of work, he is a history enthusiast who enjoys running and swimming, reading and writing, woodworking and gardening, bebop and blues, and the long-running project of fostering détente between his cats, Tilly and Horatio.
Clients & Partners
JP Hugo
Exec. Director: Planning
City of Cape Town
Your outstanding local and international pedigree coupled to your public and private sector work experience, clearly reflecting in your professional work as an urban economist and planner. You have been at the forefront of developing and adopting planning tools for the City that support an evidence-based and pragmatic approach to spatial planning and urban management issues.
Prof. F Viruly
Director
URERU / UCT
Claus is a widely respected urban researcher whose work combines rigorous quantitative and qualitative analyses with deep insight into urban management and design. His strong command of urban economics and planning enables him to bridge public policy and private-sector decision-making, resulting in implementable projects.
R McGaffin.
Head: Special Projects
Gauteng Prov. Gov.
Claus has contributed significantly through his independent thought and his desire to engage in a sophisticated and insightful manner. Claus is a mature individual who is passionate about planning and the betterment of society.
Testimonials
L Stolworthy
Manager: Transport
City of Cape Town
Your understanding of transformational priorities, the interrelatedness of land use and transport, and your ability to translate these complexities into measureable, robust and defendable indices, was extremely valuable. It is not easy to articulate something [this] complex across a broad range of stakeholders that they can not only understand but … leads them to engage positively, and for this you have a gift.
M Leslie
Managing Director
Palmer Development Group
Over more than eight years working with Claus, he developed the Urban Economies Practice Area with exceptional rigour and originality. He consistently delivered high-quality work for clients, challenging assumptions and strengthening outcomes through his strong technical capability and work ethic. The breadth, depth, and strategic significance of the projects he led are impressive, reflecting his ability to strengthen both policy and implementation through evidence-informed insight.
P Ahmad
Manager: Planning
City of Cape Town
Claus was responsible for leading…one of the highest value and technically complex professional services tenders ever issued by the City. [He] was intimately involved at every project stage ensuring that the contract was concluded successfully, in time and on budget.
Awards
Scholarship for Overseas Study
2009
Oppenheimer Memorial Trust
National Planning Award 2014
South African Planning Institute
Service Excellence Award 2015
City of Cape Town
Archaeology
Prize 2021
Leicester University
"A problem well put is half-solved."
John Dewey