Three bedroom apartment to let in Westlands

Five bedroom all-ensuite townhouse for sale

A spacious and luxurious townhouse to rent in Parklands

Three bedroom apartment to let in Parklands

Parkwood villas 4br syokimau

Tilisi 3br apartment

Great wall 3br apartment

Lavington offplan apartments

Makumbi apartments syokimau

Market, Along Manyanja Rd, Nairobi, Kenya

Umoja block sale apartment

4br townhouse own compound

MOONVALLEY 2br kileleshwa

Studio, 1-3 bedrooms Apartments

3-Bedroom Apartment

3-Bedroom Apartment+Dsq.

Studio,1,2 & 3 Bedroom Apartments for Sale

Yaya Centre, Argwings Kodhek Road, Nairobi, Kenya

One-Bedroom Apartment

2-Bedroom All En-suite

3 Bedroom Master En-suite + Dsq

3-Bedroom (Two En-suite) at Kileleshwa

One-Bedroom Furnished Apartment

2-Bedroom Fully Furnished & Serviced Apartments

2 Bedroom Apartment

Godowns For Sale in Industrial Area

E-Logistics Solutions Limited, The Eco Green Business Centre, Kenya

Grade A Warehouse

Commercial Building

Commercial Office Space

4-Star Hotel

Centum real estate has launched a third housing project, the Loft Residences, at its Two Rivers Development. 

The project follows the company&rsquo;s Riverbank and Cascadia Apartments which are also under construction at the site. Loft residences which is designed for the high-end segment of the property market will feature 4-bedroom+DSQ duplexes, with each sitting on two levels. 

The development will also feature a multifunctional clubhouse, a heated infinity pool and several jogging tracks within the Two Rivers development. 

Centum Real Estate MD, Samuel Kariui said, &ldquo;This is a high-end product with each unit offering 3,014 square feet of urban elegance. At the heart of the architectural design is a large terrace that opens up to large and expansive private gardens &ndash; a first in Kenya for condominium styled living.&rdquo; 

Mr. Kariuki said the contractor for the work has been awarded to Seyani Brothers &amp; Co., a Tier-1 contractor, to ensure the product is completed to the highest standards and quality. The project is set for completion in 2022. 

According to centum which validates its developments by targeting 30% pre-sales before breaking ground on any project, the Loft Project had achieved a 50% pre-sales level as of, validating demand. 

The project is located within the Two Rivers Residential District which occupies 30 acres of the larger Two Rivers Development. The project is estimated to cost KSh. 2 billion.

African countries have been long in the gutters of the affordable housing crisis. Among other solutions have been the attempts by governments to provide cheap and affordable housing for all citizens directly. However, the housing demand in many African countries has left many government housing programs out of their depths. Furthermore, foreign investors have had minimum impact citing the unique challenges in the African continent.

Enter Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs). REITs have been a fairly recent phenomenon in the African real estate scene which explains why the full scope of its applications are yet to be availed.

The REITs themselves are a relatively new phenomenon even by global standards having been in existence only for the past 59 years. However, the novelty of the innovation which was introduced by the US Congress in 1960 is its ability to grant even small investors access income-producing real estate assets. Until then, such assets were the preserve of the opulent players in the economy.

REITs have since spread to over 30 countries including a handful in Africa. In the US alone, the REIT industry has grown to $1 trillion equity market capitalization, nearly a third of Africa’s GDP.

Back to Africa. Surprisingly in Africa, even in countries where REITs have been introduced, the general sentiment about REITs is that of the pre-REITs era in the US. This has generally hampered the uptake of REITs by investors. There are other factors of course but it remains to be seen whether sooner than later there will be a mindset change in the way REITs are perceived by potential investors. The question for analysis however is whether REITs can solve the affordable housing challenge in Africa and how.

REITs are structured to allow investors to invest in portfolios of large-scale properties in different parts of the real estate industry by purchasing shares like they would do with shares of other companies traded over the stock exchange. Furthermore, REITs operate under strict rules and regulations that require them to distribute at least 80%(Kenya) of all income as dividends.

According to Nareit, a global representative body for REITs, the benefits of REITs include access to a diversified portfolio of assets, substantial dividends, valuable liquidity, transparency and competitive performance. The peculiar advantages of REITs is that diversified portfolios subdue the limitations that usually face individual projects. In addition, REITs usually get a good tax deal based on favourable regulations and legislations which also exempt them from capital gains tax and require high rates of profit distribution.

These unique features are designed to help REITs access financing from otherwise reserved investors, yet investors in many African countries are yet to give REITs a warm embrace.

In African markets and true to the structure of REITs, the classical way to integrate afford able housing into the REITs market would be to embed them strategically into the existing REITs, perhaps with government backing. This would be made possible by the distinctive characteristics of residential REITs which according to the Centre for Affordable Housing Finance include the potential for development, stable income, and stable capital value, effective inflation hedging and low rate of obsolescence.

The main challenges with such an approach would be the high housing management costs, taxes, liquidity risks and uncertainty in market dynamics but a comprehensive plan would remove most of these barriers. Well done, residential REITs would promote a culture of quality, affordability and sufficient supply of housing to the citizens.

In addition, residential REITs would stimulate economic development by accelerating the flow of capital into that very crucial sector of the economy and returns to the investors, supposing a wider intake by individuals across the economy.

Case studies abound. In Ghana, Africa’s earliest establishment of a REIT, the returns have consistently exceeded the inflation rate as well as the government note’s benchmark and this even in the absence of proper legislation, limited public interest and liquidity constraints.

In Tanzania, the Watumishi Housing Company REIT has a property portfolio worth $40 million and is 100% focused on residential property with an aim to supply affordable housing. The company has already made steps, supplying units at cheaper prices and has plans to list on the stock exchange this year.

In South Africa, the Indluplace Properties is the country’s first focused residential REIT with a portfolio of 5400 units and a 100% dividend pay-out. Enabling factors include strong market fundamentals, high demand for affordable and well managed rental housing.

For now, the main challenge that would face residential REITs focused on affordable housing would be the risk-reward trade-off between investment and required returns. The problem stems from the fact that the lower the income levels the higher the risk level and the lower the expected returns, making the affordable housing market segment much riskier for investors.

Given the demand for affordable housing in many African markets however, there is sufficient optimism that a mechanism can be worked out to address the needs of both beneficiaries and investors in residential REITs.

&nbsp;

&nbsp;

The Senate Committee on Devolution and Intergovernmental relations yesterday said Nakuru town had put in place necessary measures to be elevated to city status.

The County Government of Nakuru has been working to achieve the upgrade since September 2017, when a cabinet sitting approved the elevation of Nakuru and Eldoret municipalities to cities.

“Nakuru by far surpasses most of the requirements that a town needs before it can be granted a city charter. I will lead the members in seeing that the application goes through fast,” the committee’s chairperson Joseph Kinyua said.

He was speaking following a tour of the county’s development projects, and a meeting with stakeholders and the county assembly.

The committee reviewed the county’s health systems, waste management, and disaster preparedness and gave a nod.

“The amount of investment the county has put into the health sector is encouraging. We recommend that the national government pumps more funds to the sector in Nakuru, which serves more than three other counties,” said Machakos Senator Boniface Kabaka who was part of the team.

For disaster preparedness, the county is currently working on a Ksh. 160 million fire station in the CBD due for completion in November.

The elevation will enable effective planning of transport systems, education and waste management and result in increased revenue collection for the county. It will also raise the credit score of the city, giving it greater access to funding, donations and grants.

Other <a style="color: #ff6600;" href="https://www.kenyanews.go.ke/nakuru-edges-closer-to-attaining-city-status/">projects</a> undertaken by the county to boost its status include rehabilitation of the 30-acre dumpsite, the planned expansion of the town’s sewer line, refurbishment of Afraha stadium and construction of an international airport at Lanet.

Related; <a style="color: #ff6600;" href="https://estatecloud.co.ke/malindi-to-get-ksh-7-billion-urban-upgrade/">Malindi to get Ksh. 7 billion urban upgrade</a>

Nakuru gets senate approval for City status

Can REITs solve the affordable housing challenge in Africa?

Kenya is undersupplied with quality warehousing property. According to a warehousing survey done by Tilisi properties, 63 per cent of businesses have experienced delays as a result of the current warehousing shortage.

Respondents in the report said that the inadequacies had generated delays for them in meeting their customer demands. The survey was done across five sectors including manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, logistics, retail and horticulture which form the bulk of warehousing consumption.

Of all the sectors surveyed, only the horticulture sector planned 100% of its storage based on current needs, used its own space for extra storage as it searched for new options, and reporting zero product impact from warehouse shortages and searches.

In agriculture, overall, however, inadequate storage has been cited as the cause of considerable losses, where management was not sufficient.

Last year, Kenya exported flowers worth Sh. 113.3billion, yet research has shown that poor cold-chain management sees about 20% of the value of flowers wasted, equating to a loss of $100m (Sh10.3bn) for retailers, and considerable losses for producers.

Related; <a href="https://estatecloud.co.ke/tilisi-properties-says-warehousing-shortage-hurting-economic-growth/">Tilisi properties says warehousing shortage hurting economic growth</a>

Losses in the horticultural sector can be huge and immediate. It is perhaps the sheer scale of such immediate losses that has seen horticultural producers develop their own warehousing options and space in order to control this critical functional.

In addressing the scale and nature of the warehousing shortages restricting Kenya’s economic growth, Tilisi polled respondents across the five sectors on their dissatisfactions with their existing warehousing facilities.

From the survey, more than a quarter of respondents were dissatisfied with their current warehousing.

The highest level of dissatisfaction with existing warehousing by sector came from the pharmaceuticals industry at 43% dissatisfaction, followed by FMCG/ manufacturing both at 38%, and horticulture at 33%.

Only in retail are current facilities deemed fully adequate, while 90% of logistics and handling companies were also satisfied with their current warehousing facilities.

Retirement funds manager Zamara (Formerly Alexander Forbes Kenya) is set to construct a 46 floor twin tower building in Nairobi’s Westlands area.

The firm recently announced the completion of preliminary plans for the project with construction works expected to begin in June this year.

According to Zamara’s Umbrella Solutions Head Angela Okinda, the first three floors of the new complex will be reserved for commercial and retail use while the remaining upper floors will accommodate offices.

Commenting on the project, Zamara Executive Director James Olubayi said this is part of a strategy aimed at utilising part of their 128 acres of land in Nairobi and its environs, for the benefit of their member retirement schemes which bring together 33,000 members.

“Our first strategy was to build a residential estate of 211 housing units worth US$ 27m and a mall worth US$ 4m at our 30 acre property in Kitengela but we have now settled on purchasing a commercial building with tenants so as to boost earnings for our members,” <a href="https://constructionreviewonline.com/2018/03/46-floor-twin-tower-building-constructed-kenya/?utm_source=Magazine+Offers&amp;utm_campaign=2f3c9a97fc-newsletter&amp;utm_medium=email&amp;utm_term=0_a89c87e295-2f3c9a97fc-161701197" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> Mr Olubayi.

Zamara Set to construct 46 floor twin tower in Westlands

Kenya has officially launched the Kipeto Wind Power farm, a project funded by <a href="https://www.opic.gov/">Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC)</a> – the US government’s development finance institution, and Actis.

Meanwhile, the African Trade Insurance Agency (ATI), the Pan-African trade and investment insurer, said it has reached a deal to provide a 10-year standby revolving and on-demand insurance cover for the wind power project to be put up at the base of Ngong Hills in Kajiado.

The emergency facility will cushion the project from short-term cash flow challenges arising from payment defaults for a maximum of six months by the near-monopoly Kenya Power for electricity supplied to the national grid. In 2015, Kenya power signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with the 100MW Kipeto wind farm.

The project is located towards the southwestern part of Nairobi, in Ngong, on an area of land measuring approximately 70 square kilometres area. The energy generated from the Kipeto wind farm will be sold exclusively to the national off-taker, Kenya Power and Lighting Company (KPLC), under the 20-year power purchase agreement.

“OPIC is proud to support the construction and operation of the Kipeto wind farm, which will add reliable energy to Kenya’s national grid,” said OPIC President and Chief Executive Officer Ray W. Washburne.

The project is the second largest in the country after the Lake Turkana Wind Power Project. The Government of Kenya plans to achieve universal electricity access by 2020.

Source: Construction Review

Estate Cloud

Estate Cloud

Centum Breaks Ground On Loft Residences

By Estate Cloud - over 2 years ago - Kenya

RELATED ARTICLES

CONTACT

CONNECT

SUBSCRIBE