Investing in Kenya has been proven to be the most viable investment across the region because of good infrastructure, good government policies and many more.
In 2016, Ernst & Young index ranked Kenya as the top most preferred investment destination in East Africa due to good infrastructure and ease of doing business. However, most Kenyans are struggling to invest in their own country due to increased cost of living and high property prices.
Half of the year 2018 has been spent recovering from the impact caused by the prolonged election period which made it hard for businesses to operate and less money was in circulation in the economy as investors shunned investing.
Despite the booming real estate sector, Kenyans have to dig deeper into their pockets in order to invest in their property of choice. Nairobi, for example, is the most expensive city in Africa. This is revealed in the 2017 report on the cost of living from The Economic Intelligence Unit (EIU).
Worldwide, Kenya comes 75th in this index which compares prices each year across the globe. This is caused by the high cost of food and rent for the population that comes to Nairobi in search of employment and better living standards.
Majority tend to spend more on food and housing and are unable to purchase the available properties due to the high prices.
A survey conducted in 2013 by the World Bank indicated that 75 per cent of families in Nairobi, one of Kenya’s affluent counties, had monthly incomes of below Ksh22,500.
Due to the high rent prices this has led to the development of informal settlements as they cannot find affordable, decent houses. These households can only afford a mortgage of up to Ksh500,000 as most developers tend to focus on high end houses that will guarantee them a return on investment.
The launch of The Affordable Housing agenda in December 2017 by the government was a good move that aims at ensuring that the Kenyan population and especially those in urban areas, are able to access affordable and decent shelter for their families.
A family that can afford a mortgage of Kshs 500,000 will prefer buying a piece of land and then developing it in phases later because this will give them a hassle free investment journey as they secure the future of their families.
When real estate companies target this population with affordable land, they will greatly help the government achieve the housing agenda and increase the number of people who will be home owners by 2022.
2018 is a good year for Kenya as the economy is projected to rebound to a GDP growth of 5.6% and 6.2% in 2019 according to the Kenya Economic Outlook and with the political stability and the good weather.
The new Financial Year 2018/2019 is also expected to realize a further growth of the economy in terms of infrastructure.
This will play a key role in ensuring that the private sector is in a position to open up investment opportunities at county levels and especially affordable land which is key in ensuring the Affordable Housing Agenda is realized in our nation.
With the condition of the potential investors in Kenya on one hand and the interest of real estate companies on the other hand, it is important to make properties deliberately affordable to achieve a mutual benefit for the investor and the buyer.
This will ensure continuity of the affordable housing agenda to the future generations who are also looking up to investing in real estate in Kenya.
Investing in Kenya is worth investment especially when you are looking at long term investment
