- Kenyan investors in the property market have been losing lifetime savings as projects they invest in fail to materialise.
- Bill establishes a framework to address most of the challenges facing the sector.
Image: PATRICK VIDIJA
A bill seeking to protect the interests of Kenyan investors in off-plan housing schemes is ready.
The Ministry of Transport, Infrastructure, Housing, Urban Development and Public Works is further developing regulations to govern property developers and other players in the housing sector.
Transport CS James Macharia made the revelations as off-plan home buying is losing appeal with the scheme riddled with fraud.
Several developers have been charged in the recent past for going under with billions invested by buyers.
As a result, most investors have become reluctant to buy off-plan, citing lack of information on the final product and concerns on developer reliability.
In a memorandum to the Senate Committee on Roads and Transport, Machaia noted that the housing sector lacks a comprehensive framework to regulate the industry.
“My ministry has formulated a draft Housing Bill which contains provisions to guide the housing delivery process, protect investors and aspiring homeowners and aid in weeding out of rogue developers,” he said.
Macharia added that the housing regulations being developed will establish the real estate regulatory board.
The board shall among other duties register and maintain a database of developers, regulate and protect interests of buyers and developers in real estate and provide a framework to guide transactions between buyers and developers.
He said the existing law is the Housing Act Cap 117, which created the National Housing Corporation and governs its operations but does not regulate the sector.
Macharia added that the sector requires a comprehensive all-encompassing law to regulate operations of key players in the sector.
It has become normal for disappointed investors to troop to police offices to record statements when they fail to get an audience with the directors of the real estate companies.
Macharia appealed to the Senate to fast-track the approval of the housing bill once it is submitted for consideration as it establishes a framework to address most of the challenges facing the sector.
“Enactment of the Housing Bill will also facilitate the development of the Housing Regulations,” he pointed out.
He added: “In the event there is a delay in the enactment of the Housing Bill, the proposed Housing Regulations can be anchored under the existing Housing Act Cap 117 by making ab amendment to the Act.”
He noted that stakeholders' inputs and comments on the housing regulations were received and reviewed by the ministry and incorporated into the draft report.
The CS said a concept noted was prepared and shared with different stakeholders in August 2020 who submitted comments and inputs.
Macharia said that the ministry had organised regional stakeholder workshops that were to be carried out in Kisumu, Nakuru, Nairobi and Mombasa but the meetings were postponed due to Covid-19 pandemic.
-Edited by Sarah Kanyara