Owning a home in Kenya is becoming more expensive and riskier, the Star reported on Monday. Buyers face rising land prices, slow self-build projects and rigid mortgages. Some off-plan developments are never delivered.
Morris Ouma bought land in Ruaka, Kiambu County, in 2010 for KSh 1.5 million. Comparable plots there now cost more than KSh 5 million. He has built his house slowly from periodic savings. He told the Star the journey had been long but he was "almost there".
Data from property consultancy HassConsult show land in Nairobi's satellite towns averaged KSh 33 million per acre as of March 2026. A decade earlier, the figure was KSh 16 million. At that average, a quarter-acre plot costs about KSh 8.25 million before legal fees, transfer costs and construction. In prime suburbs, an acre averages KSh 231.9 million. Cheaper plots on the city's edge often bring extra costs for roads, water, electricity and security.
Building costs are rising more slowly. Kenya National Bureau of Statistics data show construction-input inflation eased to 0.53 per cent in 2025, from 2.83 per cent in 2024. Real estate developer John Kamau said this did not mean construction had become cheap. He said final costs still depend on design, materials, contractors and project management.
The wider market is mixed. Knight Frank said prime residential prices rose 6.2 per cent in the first half of 2026. But HassConsult found apartment prices fell in 10 of 18 areas surveyed in the year to March 2026. Prices dropped 7.9 per cent in Westlands and 6.8 per cent in Upper Hill. Standalone house prices rose in 11 of 14 areas.
Mortgage debt is growing. Central Bank of Kenya data show outstanding mortgage loans rose from KSh 279.3 billion in December 2024 to KSh 307.2 billion in December 2025. Mortgage accounts grew from 30,016 to 30,762. The average loan rose from KSh 9 million to KSh 10 million.
Buyers told the Star about the strain. Nairobi resident Phyllis Nyanchira said saving for a deposit while paying rent was hard. She said homeownership was becoming reserved for the rich. Fred Onyango said he paid instalments for an off-plan home that was never delivered. His savings are now tied up in the project.