A billboard advertises homes for sale. The 2008 post-election violence contributed to the Kiambu county housing boom. Photo/ERIC WAINAINA
Are you looking for land to build a house for sale or to let? Kiambu is the place to be.
A few years ago, Kiambu was a tea and coffee farming zone but the scenario has been changing rapidly after developers invaded the prime land to build homes for either sale or rent.
There are more then 20 ongoing construction sites, of mainly flats, in Kiambu, Juja, Thika, Githunguri, Kikuyu and Ruiru.
Mr Michael Njuguna, the director of Njuakim property managing firm, said most developers preferred flats because the housing industry has better returns.
He said demand for houses to rent had shot up by more than 100 per cent in the last three years.
In 2007, a single room went for between Sh1,200 and Sh2,000, to day it goes for between Sh3,000 and Sh4,000.
Then, double rooms went for between Sh3,000 and Sh4,000 but today the cheapest goes for Sh5,000 per month.
A one bed roomed house used to go for between Sh5,000 and Sh6,000 but today the cheapest is Sh8,000 and some landlords ask for as Sh13,000.
Developers are taking the advantage of this trend to build attractive flats and mansions and reap from the high rent.
Mr Njuguna said that change in lifestyle was another contributing factor, adding that most young people want to live in beautiful homes away from their parents.
Proximity to Nairobi
Kiambu’s proximity to Nairobi is another factor.
“Most people want to live near their work places. That’s why people are flocking into places like Kiambu, Kajiado, and other places on the outskirts on Nairobi,” said Joseph Maina, a tenant at Thindigua.
The 2008 post-election violence also contributed to the Kiambu county housing boom. The area was not affected by the clashes.
Businessman Nginyo Kariuki plans to build homes at Ndumberi in Kiambu.
“Besides being a solution to the high demand of houses and giving good returns to the investors, real estate gives an area a good look which attracts other investors who also help in developing the area,” he said.
The booming housing business threatens tea and coffee farming since some people have uprooted the crops to construct houses while others have subdivided their land into plots for sale.
Edenville, a real estate company, is constructing homes in Kiambu town on land that two years ago was part of a coffee plantation.
A worker at the site, who declined to be named because he is not authorised to speak for the firm, said the cost of the houses had risen from Sh10.5 million each last year to Sh15 million, adding that the price could go up again due to high demand.
“This was a coffee plantation but buildings have taken over since there is high demand and the business has better returns than coffee,” he said.
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