Man Explains How Govt Affordable Houses Buyers Earn KSh 2k Daily, Urges Kenyans to Buy
- Jacob Simiyu claimed that some buyers of government-built affordable houses are turning them into profitable Airbnb-style rentals
- MySpace Properties CEO Mwenda Thuranira gave a reason why the government housing units are cheaper than those offered by private developers
- Housing PS Charles Hinga said the cost structure was designed to match what residents in informal settlements already pay, while providing the long-term benefit of ownership
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Elijah Ntongai, an editor at TUKO.co.ke, has over four years of financial, business, and technology research and reporting experience, providing insights into Kenyan, African, and global trends.
A Kenyan man has revealed how some buyers of government-built affordable houses are turning the properties into lucrative short-term rental businesses.
Source: Facebook
Jacob Simiyu, speaking in a short video on social media, urged Kenyans not to dismiss the ongoing Affordable Housing Programme (AHP).
He claimed that some Kenyans have found opportunities and are making money from the houses.
Simiyu noted that the low monthly payments for the government houses have given buyers an opportunity to make passive income.
“Do not dismiss this story about affordable housing because people are making money. People are paying an instalment of less than KSh 5,000 per month, and then they set up the houses as Airbnbs. Then they charge about KSh 2,000 per night. If that person gets customers even 20 days in a month, you can imagine how much they are making,” Simiyu said.
“Then someone is out here discouraging you that it is a bad idea… yet they are out there buying those houses and putting up BnBs. So go ahead, get that house,” Simiyu added.
Are Affordable Housing Units cheap?
In an earlier report on TUKO.co.ke, Mwenda Thuranira, MySpace Properties CEO, explained that the government housing units are more affordable compared to the costs of similar houses provided by the private sector players.
Mwenda said that the housing units are funded by taxpayers and are designed to be more affordable and flexible in terms of payments.
"The people who take up the houses are based on a rent to own model, and the price was agreed upon based on the services and type of housing the people wanted. They are affordable to the target market as now they pay less for housing since before they were exploited by paying high rents for informal housing without piped water and electricity, which was more expensive," Mwenda told TUKO.co.ke.
What is the cost of Affordable Housing Units?
Recently, the Kenyan government commissioned over 1000 bedsitters or studio houses in the Mukuru Estate.
The government announced that residents moving into the newly completed Mukuru Housing Estate under the Affordable Housing Programme would pay KSh 2,800 monthly for bedsitters under the rent-to-own model.
Housing PS Charles Hinga explained that the amount includes a KSh 1,000 subsidised service charge and KSh 200 for insurance.
He noted that the pricing was designed to mirror what residents in informal settlements already pay, but with the added benefit of eventual ownership.
In early June, the government advertised over 800 completed housing units for sale across multiple counties.
Proofreading by Asher Omondi, copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.
Source: TUKO.co.ke
