Like any other decision in life, deciding to buy a house presents you with a number of challenges, factors to consider and consequences to weigh. In order to make the right decision you need to have the facts right.
The property industry in Kenya is still one of the most diverse and vibrant in the region, this means there is something for everyone. Before you start talking to your realtor you need to define a few pointers with those close to you:
- You need to define how many bedrooms you need dependent on the size of your household, type of kitchen depending on your social habits/preference, extra rooms such as guest room, store, study, laundry whether you want the rooms en-suite, etc. as you set this out remember each specification has its consequence on the budget.
- You need to define the needs of each one in the family (sticking within the limits of what is realistic). Special needs like disability and the need for ramps/elevators or appropriate location of particular facilities in the building need to be set out at this point.
- It is also prudent to define your daily expenditure, which is how much money you intend to spend on transport, food and other services in a day. Different localities have different prices for the same goods and services. For instance a kilo of tomatoes in a middle income estate is cheaper than in a high income estate, transport cost like wise.
- Define your budget depending on your cash in the bank, the level of income, or current monthly rent vis-à-vis mortgage repayments for those intending to finance their purchase through a mortgage. Professional fees such as legal fees, provisional stamp duty (about 4%) registration of lease/title, valuation and v.a.t. etc., should also be considered in the budget.
- Another important factor to consider is your preferred new physical address. This is a major factor because the prices of land are the single most significant contributor to the price of any house. High end property like in Nyali, Kizingo, and Tudor in Mombasa or say Runda, Muthaiga and Karen in Nairobi to mention but a few is not only expensive but also attracts high service charges and may lack public transport services.
After defining these important factors you can shop around to determine among other factors the availability of the house you can afford without stretching your financials too much, and also taking care to check that your most immediate household needs are well taken care of. Your realtor can come in handy as they have property listings with a representative of everything available in the market from plots for those who would like to build their houses, low-cost housing and middle class housing, to high end prestigious housing, property magazines such unique homes magazine are also very comprehensive in informing you about what is hot in the property markets and why. Property shows are another avenue for improving your property literacy, adverts by property companies, property expose can also give you a light to where to buy or develop your dream house more affordably because they give you options.
