quarter became a well sought after accommodation .
The NARC Revolution
Pressure on rents never ceased even with the coming to power of the NARC administration and the revival of National Housing Corporation in 2003 . It actually got worse . There was renewed investor interest and local hope . Its during this time that Kenyans were voted the most optimistic people in the world . And the turmoil in the neighboring states persisted .
New Developers
In light of the improved governance , new developers rushed in to meet the gap in the housing demand . For the first time , apartment living was introduced in the upmarket estates of Westlands , Parklands , Kileleshwa , Kilimani , Valley Arcade and Lavington .
A new crop of buyers too emerged . They were well endowed with cash and could gobble up all the units even before they were built . This same group of moneyed cash buyers would follow the developers to every new project and book them up .
It was not uncommon to be told that a new project that had not even started had been all taken up by the very same buyers . The group consisted of a small clique of local tycoons mostly government bureaucrats with a generous dose of foreigners mostly Somali and Sudan nationals .
While the local tycoons concentrated in buying the new upcoming houses in upmarket estates , the foreigners initially concentrated in the down market taking over Eastleigh , Komarock , Saika , South C , Nairobi West and down town Nairobi shops .
‘‘ It may not be there yet but its coming . This is not a prophecy but pure science . Whenever there is a bubble , a burst is sure to follow . Brace yourself for it . What could hold it longer is the fact that most properties were bought or developed with hot money and not loans . Such buyers can bear the heat much longer .’’
To The Periphery
As the party of property buying went on , ordinary Kenyans were salivating on the sidelines . Remember as per the 2013 Kenya National Bureau of Statistics , less than 70,000 Kenyans earned more than Kshs . 100,000 /= and less than 20,000 mortgages had been issued by our banks till then . These figures confirm that Kenyans were not party to the real estate craze .
However , you cannot salivate forever as others are dramatically eating in your presence . Ordinary Kenyans also soon found a way to eat the crumbs from the main table . That ’ s how the idea of palatial homes in the outskirts of the city was mooted .
From the blues , award winning land buying companies sprung up . So as the moneyed built up and took over the city , ordinary folks bought and sub-divide plots in the city neighborhood for their new homes .
Suffice to mention that at the same time , there was a massive investment in infrastructure that opened up the city . The by-passes were created . Thika Superhighway was up and running . You could live in Thika , Ruiru , Limuru , Kijabe or Katani and still work in the city comfortably .
Little Change In Real Income
Whereas the real estate developments spawned new opportunities , there was no significant change in real income of Kenyans . The influx of renting foreigners from US marines and UN bodies pushed rents in Upmarket areas like Runda , Gigiri and Kitisuru to new highs . We saw rents balloon from Kshs . 300,000 /= to 500,000 /= in Runda .
In other suburbs like Kilimani , Westlands , Kileleshwa and Lavington rents averaged Kshs . 100,000 to 250,000 /=. Now , one would be interested to know how many working Kenyans earn a house allowance of Kshs . 100,000 /=.
Equally , one may be interested in knowing how many Kenyans can afford a monthly mortgage of Kshs . 223,589 /= for that is the monthly mortgage repayment for 25 years on a loan of 18 million at the controlled rate of 14.5 percent .
The figures are stark and far way off . Yet buyers continued to flock the developers offices buying both rental and office spaces , and mostly in cash . There was some
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