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InvesteQ Capital Limited Chief Executive Officer Dan Awendo .
BY SAM ALFAN
The Kenyan government has been urged to educate and sensitize Kenyans to accept cheaply produced technological housing units to reduce cost of housing especially in urban areas.
InvesteQ Capital Limited Chief Executive Officer Dan Awendo said that there is a general negative attitude towards technological units that if accepted would greatly lower the cost of housing in Kenya.
“There is little uptake of lower end technological units due to negative cultural perception. If the lower end market is to be satisfied, public education on affordable technology generated units is key,” he said.
Awendo also said that there is need for the government to improve policies around land use by coming up with regulations that favor both the developer and the low end buyer.
The CEO was speaking today, April 7, 2016 during the East Africa Property Investment Summit at a Nairobi hotel that brought together real estate industry players in East Africa to discuss investment opportunities and challenges affecting the sector.
“Effective land policies would ensure that land bought is developed within a certain period of time which will make it affordable for the low income buyer and also the developer,” said the CEO.
International Finance Corporation Investmentkkjkjkijkjkt Officer Tigere Muzenda called on the government to improve the tax regime saying that high tax rates discourage investors and those who risk developing pass the financial burden to the customer.
Tigere also said that the government should consider getting into Public-Private Partnerships so as to give civil servants modern and decent housing at affordable rates.
He said that Kenya is the biggest market for middle and high end housing as it presents a vibrant market all the way from construction to the buyer.
“There is a looming saturation around middle end houses as most investors have focused on them while there is still high demand in lower end housing,” he said.
Coldwell Banker Kenya Managing Director Danielle Callaway said that the biggest impediment to provision of lower end housing is the lack of buyer demographics that would show the developer where the target market is.
