This last post on Kenyan real estate produced a ton of great feedback, hence another one.
Home Expo
The 2008 Home Expo took place over the weekend at KICC, which was nice to attend, though it was strange that there was a simultaneous one (for home interiors?) as Sarit Center over the same weekend/period
Financers
- Standard Chartered: Up to 90% finance, Up to 20 year loans, decision in 48 hours. Also offer equity release loans
- Barclays: 14.5% interest rate, 10% down payment (reduced from 15%), and loans up to 20 years
- Housing Finance: have Start up plan (12 to 20 years),
House plan (5 to 12 years) and Ace plan (<5 years) loans for owner occupied, investment residential, equity release & top up, construction loans, residential plots, buy a plot & build.
- S&L: interest of 14% variable or 15% fixed, loans for individuals can be up to 25 years, while for companies & investment/rentals is 10 years, and estate development , just 2 years. In major towns they finance up to 90% for owner occupied and 80% for income generating properties (i.e. 20% down payment); while for rural properties it is 70% for owner occupied and 60% for income generating
Savings: S&L and the banks have various savings plans, while Bora real estate investment management (BREIL) were also represented with a plan starting at Kshs. 10,000 ($135)
Insurance: AIG Kenya were notable marketing home insurance packages that escalate to match the appreciating cost of home repair, include a domestic employee cover (DYK employers are liable in their house maids are injury or die?) and also cover the cost of trauma in the event of an attempted home theft.
Home Internet: Zuku (from Wananchi) vs. net@home vs. Broadband hotspots from Safaricom
Solar heating: at a time of record domestic electricity bills for consumers, alternative energy (mainly solar) products were on offer from Davis & Shirtliff, Solar Exide, and Sharp.
From the Blogs
- Funny Money Kenyan Entrepreneur questions the growing debt burden in Kenya, some of which is rel estate real estate, arguing that the numbers don’t add up. Meanwhile, there's an offline article in the East African by Joachim Buwembo that attributes the rapidly growing and appreciating real estate markets in east Africa in part to hot money that previously used to fly to Swiss bank accounts
- John McCain has 7 homes: I’m partial to Fahari Estate but this post by MainaT raises an interesting point about other towns (e.g. Nyeri, Kericho, Malindi) worthy of real state investment, for work or retirement.
5 comments:
I use Bambanet 3G, its expensive out of bundle(if u exceed your paid 4 minutes) but it downloads songs,movies zippingly fast.
Anybody use Access,Zuku or Orange whats the experience?
How about Zain, whats the speed like?
pesa tu: I am using Infinet (Africa Online) and Telkom Wireless. Average to good speeds, depending on where you are. Surprisingly, I am able to connect through Telkom Wireless in relatively remote areas across Kenya. Speeds should improve as soon as the fabulous cable is there.
Hi Banks
I read the dept article by kenyan entrepreneura and I am really getting woried by this so called real estate boom. The prices being charged for flats and houses is no longer speculation....its sheer madness. The returns on investment cannot justify the prices being charged.
I think the largesse with which the banks have been dishing out mortgages are to blame for the irrational behaviour of the public. How a 2 bedroom flat that cost 6million 6 months ago, now goes for 9 million, I have no words. The vendor swears he will sell it for 10 million shillings in December!
He agrees that we are in a bubble, but it wont burst just yet........! What? Isnt that what americans said about their sub prime mortgages a couple of months ago??
I have 3 Riddles for Kenyans:
1. How to find a truly clean piece of land in Nairobi that is fairly priced
2. How to deal with land transfer and building plans approval without resorting to bribery (which takes you back to 1)
3. How to construct in Kenya while being abroad - without being ripped off for cement, materials and even money?
The collapse of the Japanese real estate bubble in the 1990's epitomized the wrenching economic transition that Japan went through in the past decade. But out of the troubled landscape of the property market has emerged a booming real estate investment market known as J-REIT, Japan's rendition of the real estate investment trusts that are widely popular in the United States and elsewhere.The market that began in September 2001 with just two listed vehicles has grown to a total market capitalization of nearly ¥1 trillion, or $9.4 billion, shared among 10 listed funds.
--------------------------------------------
francis
Link Building
Post a Comment