Money Markets
More Kenyans go online to look for properties for renting. PHOTO | FILE
By JOHN GACHIRI, jgachiri@ke.nationmedia.com
In Summary
- Lamudi, in its first property report for the Kenyan market, says that seven out of 10 users are searching for rental apartments while the rest look for properties to buy.
A majority of Kenyans browsing online property sites
look for rental apartments, a report by Lamudi, a portal that focuses on
emerging markets has shown.
Lamudi, in its first property report for the Kenyan market,
says that seven out of 10 users are searching for rental apartments
while the rest look for properties to buy.
“Unlike many of its neighbouring countries, where
buying and renting interests are somewhat balanced, Kenyans strongly
lean towards renting properties. Seventy-one per cent of searches are by
house-hunters looking for properties to rent, with only 29 per cent are
searching to buy,” said the report.
The report looked at user trends over the last one
year. The survey was carried out in 16 countries where the global firm
operates.
In Tanzania, the survey shows users who are looking
for houses to rent accounted for 35.25 per cent, which Lamudi
attributed to the neighbouring country’s government heavy investing in
housing.
Kenyan users aged between 25 and 34 years are the
most active group accounting for 36 per cent of house-hunters while the
most preferred houses are one and two-bedroom apartments.
Users aged between 35 and 44 years were the second most active accounting for 26.5 per cent of traffic.
Lamudi co-founder Kian Moin said that should credit
become cheaper it will attract more investors to come and provide units
for sale as opposed to rentals.
“Although there is an imbalance between the supply
of housing and the current demand, this gap provides investors and
developers with a great opportunity to make capital gains and fuel the
economy. Especially with lower interest rates, the real estate market
has great potential for growth,” said Mr Moin.
The report also showed that most users are
accessing the website using desktops, but Lamudi expects increase in
smartphones and tablets use in future.
“There exists, however, untapped market potential,
as many Kenyans are already making use of other mobile services and with
numbers surely to rise in the near future,” said the report.
Lamudi launched a property app in August. Lamudi’s
findings mirror those by the Hass Index Home Ownership report which
showed that most houses that are sold are rented.
The ownership report said that 75 per cent of all apartments sold to investors, mostly institutional and couples are rented out.
Nancy Muthoni, who co-authored the ownership
report, said that these investors sustain the property market that is
still churning out maisonettes and apartments even as most Kenyans find
it hard to buy homes.
“Institutional buying has also shot up, from less
than one in 20 properties to now almost a fifth of all purchases. They
explain the ongoing resilience in buying even as most Kenyans remain
firmly locked out of home ownership,” said Ms Muthoni
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