Kenya Real Estate – Top 6 Things to Consider Before You Buy a Piece of Land

Kenya Real Estate – Top 6 Things to Consider Before You Buy a Piece of Land

Kenya real estate investment offers you numerous options. Buying land is one of the, Here are some factors that you need to look into before you buy Land in Kenya.

Developmental Outlook:
Are you buying land for residential or commercial purposes? Do you want to build your home, flats to rent or shops to let? Your answer to these questions may determine the location of the land you should buy. For instance, if you want to build flats to let, consider areas with close local facilities such as supermarkets, schools and health care facilities. Many families prefer to live only a couple of miles from their children’s school. This will therefore affect where they rent a house.

Location:
You have heard it before – location, location, location. It affects price considerable. Half an acre of land may cost 10 times more in Runda compared to Embakasi area. However, Embakasi is closer to the airport compared to Runda. The location of the land you wish to purchase should indeed conform to your Kenya real estate development objectives.

Distance from the Main Road:
The further out you go from the main road, the cheaper the parcel of land. However, security may also be compromised. If you are buying land with the objective of building rental property, you may have to contend with lesser amount of rental income if you build far out from the main road. I was looking for a house to rent recently and I settled for a smaller property that was closer to the main road rather than a bigger one further out.

Access to Water, Electricity and Telephone Lines:
Some Kenya real estate areas such as Kitengela are not very developed and may lack electricity and telephone lines as well as piped water. Lack of these facilities makes the land cheaper though, but at what cost. My mum bought a couple of acres in Kitengela and had to sink her own borehole and pump water into the house. She also had to apply for electricity from Kenya Power and Lighting Company. Luckily for her, it turned out to be a hassle free process. It is cheaper to buy land in such areas but you must be prepared to bear the extra costs and delays. Sometimes, like in my mum’s case, it proved worthwhile.

Soil Texture:
Well, believe it or not, soil texture does affect Kenya real estate value. Areas with black cotton soil tend to be cheaper as compared to red soil regions. For instance, parts of Mombasa road have black cotton soil and can not be compared to red soil areas such as Karen, Muthaiga or Runda. Soil texture also affects building costs.

Sewer Location:
Some areas have sewer restrictions and thus not suitable for certain types of Kenya real estate development. Developments along the famous Ngong Road have been restricted dues to the overloaded sewer. If you intend to build an apartment complex for sale or to let, you have to check the sewer restrictions as well as other planning restrictions issued by the local council.

With this factors are all put in consideration, purchasing land in Kenya should be smooth sailing.

Margaret Nguyo is the web editor for My Kenya Guide. She has written invaluable tips on investing in Kenya real estate. Get them here – http://www.my-kenya-guide.com/kenya-real-estate.html

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