Companies

Liberty disposes of Karen property for Sh125 million

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The company disposed of its Heritage House in Naivasha in 2017 for Sh95 million. FILE PHOTO | NMG

Liberty Holdings #ticker:CFCI has sold its residential house in Nairobi’s Karen estate to property developer Africa Reit for Sh125 million, the second such disposal for the firm amid declining returns on some of its real estate investments.

The Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE)-listed firm said it sold the prime property, held directly by one of its insurance subsidiaries, due to low returns.

“The group has decided not to continue holding Karen road property owned by Liberty Life Assurance Kenya Limited as investment property and therefore its classification changes to non-current assets held for sale,” the insurance group says in its latest annual report.

The company disposed of its Heritage House in Naivasha in 2017 for Sh95 million.

Liberty’s chief executive Mike du Toit told the Business Daily that the company has made a sale agreement with Africa Reit whose office is next to the property.

He said the parties are awaiting final clearances from the Land ministry to complete the Sh125 million transaction.

Liberty’s total rental income in the year ended December stood at Sh98.4 million, a 25.5 percent drop from Sh123.6 million the year before.

Direct operating expenses arising on the investment property declined to Sh51 million from Sh53.3 million over the same period.

Africa Reit is a property developer backed by private equity firm Phatisa.

The company says it is developing a portfolio of properties which it plans to eventually list on the NSE as a real estate investment trust (Reit).

Stanlib Fahari I-Reit is the first and only publicly-traded property investment vehicle in Kenya.