NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 29 – Youth who form much of the populace in the country have been urged to invest in real estate in a bid to decongest the city and make it a commercial hub and boost Foreign Direct Investment (FDI).
Real Estate firm, Unique Investors Property, said many young people have been sidelined in the line of land investment mainly due to the unaffordability nature of properties within the city.
The firm’s CEO Patrick Malika said there is a need for the youth empowered in taking charge of investments in their own country.
“The young people have been sidelined in the line of investment when it comes to land. In the suburbs, it is too expensive for the youth to have a chunk,” Malika said during its 8th edition of Title Deed Issuance ceremony.
He said the appetite for real estate in terms of land has remained strong among older generations.
“Our grandparents invested in this city in the 1970s but now it’s quite expensive to even stay in the city. Let’s decongest the city for it to be more of a commercial hub to host the foreigners. Like right now, we can’t host the World cup due to a lack of enough bed capacity. It’s about time we open the rural areas,” Malika said.
Real estate sectors namely, residential, office, retail, and hospitality particularly were hit by lockdown measures and diminishing disposable income by a majority of Kenyans, hence affecting disposable incomes.
Despite the surge of the coronavirus pandemic that has dealt a blow to the economic sector, it has acted as a wake-up call to investors in terms of owning their own priorities.
Malika stated that there has been an influx of investors taking up investment opportunities in real estate.
“It has been a call to remember that it is not possible to continue renting and the status quo will remain. When salary cuts and loss of jobs were rife, it was a wake-up call for many,” said Malika.
The UIP CEO however alluded that without the growth of infrastructure and progress in the devolution sector then the real estate sector will not attain growth.
“We have the Standard Gauge Railway that is now working, and we are looking into the government to invest more in infrastructure through electric railway. This will enable Kenyans to stay in their homes and commute to the city to work,” said Malika.
