Comfort Homes’ Multibillion housing project to boost affordable housing programme

By Rapando

The Syokimau area in Mavoko Constituency, Machakos County has become attractive to Real Estate developers and private investors targeting the manufacturing sector.

It is the growing demand for house ownership in serene neighborhoods that has seen the area emerge as a soft target with the latest being a Sh 5 billion housing project that was launched last month.

The project that is off-Katani road and 1.5 kilometers from the Mombasa Road Highway will add to other numerous housing projects ongoing all the way from Athi River to the busy Mulolongo town that lies on the Machakos and Nairobi border.

Comfort Homes Director, Dr Hezekiah Kariuki said that, what now stands out is the fact that developers are taking the risk of upsetting the high taxes on Real Estate Developers with the hope of making reasonable profits in the future.

The Sh 5 billion project that is being done by Comfort Homes is a practical example of private developers’ willingness to cooperate with the national government to enable Kenyans own houses at affordable rates and within safe environments.

The developer admits that it’s a big risk because of the changing trends in the taxation model in the country and considering that most counties are reviewing their valuation roll upwards.

However, such projects put developers at a better position to negotiate with the government on how to fast track the Affordable Housing Program (AHP) launched in December 2017, with an ambitious target of providing 500,000 units.

“The project covers 6 acres of land and will have one thousand units with one going for Sh 5million.Willing buyers will have to pay Sh 500k as deposit with the rest paid within 24 to 36 months,”Comfort Homes Director, Dr Kariuki said.

The developer projects that it will take three years to complete all the units which means potential buyers have adequate time to prepare.

According to the company’s Director Dr. Ezekiah Kariuki, the company is lining up to help the national government and in particular cities like Nairobi,Nakuru and Mombasa to meet their housing demands.

He has however called on the national government to review some of its taxes on property developers investing in the affordable housing programme.

In Jan 2021 the VAT rate on property was reinstated to 16% from 14% through a legal notice in accordance with the law.

“The government should consider reasonable incentives to both the developers and the buyers so that we can have more houses and a corresponding uptake from the public,” Dr Kariuki said.

He has also called on both the national and county governments to keep improving on the road infrastructure to ease the work being done by developers.

This comes at a time when developers targeting critical areas in Nairobi have called for proper zoning and fair regulations in the sector.

Comfort Zones has operated for the last 15 years having put up similar projects in Kiambu,Kajiado,Kirinyaga,Nairobi and Mombasa counties.

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