Are Nairobi’s satellite towns disasters in the making?
Omwenga says that urban sprawl being witnessed in Ongata Rongai, Ruai, Syokimau, Ngong, Kiambu, Ruiru, Isinya and Kiserian is a disaster in the making as there is no planning to support that growth.
By Austine Okande 8 years ago
Are Nairobi’s satellite towns disasters in the making?
Slum whose dwellers once lived in Runda
A common perception has it that beside every affluent hood is a slum. A companion; looking, lurking, feeding it and from it. Karen has the famous Kibera and beside Runda is the less known Mji wa Huruma.
By Austine Okande 8 years ago
Slum whose dwellers once lived in Runda
Where Mandela’s ‘Long Walk to Freedom’ started
In the serene and fertile Midlands in KwaZulu-Natal - five kilometres north-west of Howick - is the Nelson Mandela Capture Site, one of South Africa’s most iconic shrines.
By Austine Okande 8 years ago
Where Mandela’s ‘Long Walk to Freedom’ started
Money laundering: The tag real estate can’t shake off
“Recently, a middle-aged man visited my office with €400,000 (Sh43.9 million) all in cash wanting to buy my clients’ property in Kilimani. When i insisted that the payment be made through a bank; the man and his two accomplices stormed out of my office never to come back,” a high-end property agent who only wished to be referred to as James tells Home & Away.
By Austine Okande 8 years ago
Money laundering: The tag real estate can’t shake off
Nairobi’s wetlands disappearing
Not far from Runda Water Limited (RWL) are upmarket homes each set on half-an-acre with lush manicured gardens - dream homes for many; their exquisiteness notwithstanding, the homes are unlivable during the rainy season.
By Austine Okande 8 years ago
Nairobi’s wetlands disappearing
Why the rich are shunning Kileleshwa
A running joke has it that the upwardly mobile Nairobian, starts off in Eastlands estates like Umoja, works his way to Buruburu or Langata Road and on to Kileleshwa on his way up.
By Austine Okande 8 years ago
Why the rich are shunning Kileleshwa
What next for Lavington?
At one point this area was mentioned in the same breath as Runda and Muthaiga. Today, however, this has changed after it was re-zoned and can only look back at the good old days, writes AUSTINE OKANDE
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
What next for Lavington?
Where did the rain start beating Nairobi?
When it rains in Nairobi it floods, and when it floods the city’s old sewer lines overflow; spewing smelly raw sewage onto the roads, into residential areas and worse still contaminating clean water pipes.
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
Where did the rain start beating Nairobi?
The lavish lifestyle of diplomats
All over the world, diplomats and other high level expatriates have been known to occupy the best homes in the best locations in their host countries. The trend is the same in Kenya where diplomats reside in upmarket suburbs, where some developers have put up posh homes targeting them, write PETER MUIRURI and AUSTINE OKANDE
By PETER MUIRURI and AUSTINE OKANDE 9 years ago
The lavish lifestyle of diplomats
‘Local firms register late for expos, miss good spots’
Skander Negasi is the CEO of Trade and Fairs East Africa Limited, organisers of CIBEX East Africa Fairs. AUSTINE OKANDE spoke with him on his mission, and the challenges and opportunities in the international exhibition sector
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
‘Local firms register late for expos, miss good spots’
Construction of lawyers’ convention centre on course
Plans to construct the Sh1.2 billion International Arbitration and Convention Centre in Nairobi’s South C Estate is underway after the High Court in Mombasa and Nairobi dismissed two separate cases filed by disgruntled Law Society of Kenya (LSK) members.
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
Construction of lawyers’ convention centre on course
Cashing in on plush ambassadorial homes
Construction activity is hotting up in Nairobi’s posh neighbourhoods as savvy developers move in to take advantage of the rising demand for ambassadorial homes.
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
Cashing in on plush ambassadorial homes
Want to have peace of mind? Insure that property
Increased demand for property insurance has seen non-life insurance premiums rise steadily in Kenya, according to various reports and industry experts.
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
Want to have peace of mind? Insure that property
Mayday: Eastleigh’s plunge
Above the roaring din of revving Eastleigh matatus, the streets are slowly getting their character back. And by character this refers to the bustling horde of humanity that has over time become synonymous with this part of Nairobi.
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
Mayday: Eastleigh’s plunge
There are cheaper options to owning a home
Financial and Property Consutants Ltd CEO Martin Dias answers questions about home ownership
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
There are cheaper options to owning a home
Where we lost the plot in architecture
Experts put the 1960s to mid-1980s as the golden years of local architecture, then everything changed post 1985. Today, the industry is putting up structures that contribute more to global warming
By AUSTINE OKANDE 9 years ago
Where we lost the plot in architecture
More green design experts needed
Kenya has about 20 environmental design experts. While this is, ironically, one of the highest in Africa, the small number is partly to blame for the few green buildings in the country.
By AUSTINE OKANDE 9 years ago
More green design experts needed
Why the wealthy are moving out of posh suburbs
Even after 50 years of independence, Nairobi’s planning still largely mirrors its colonial era image. The capital’s initial planning strategically positioned the white settlers in the North and West parts of the city, areas that later earned the name leafy suburbs.
By AUSTINE OKANDE 9 years ago
Why the wealthy are moving out of posh suburbs
Temple built to nurture Sikhism
Considered as one of the iconic buildings in Nairobi, Gurdwara Siri Guru Singh Sabha temple, which has maintained its structural authenticity to date, not only serves as a historic monument but also as a reminder of the inception of the Sikh culture in the city.
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
Temple built to nurture Sikhism
Railway station that bore Kenya’s capital
Nairobi is today famous for its unique beautiful skyline. But did you know that this city, which in many ways still exudes an archetype of its colonial masters, started as a railway town?
By Austine Okande 9 years ago
Railway station that bore Kenya’s capital
River Road’s changing face
Increased security and redevelopment of this segment of the city’s downtown has boosted its profile, writes AUSTINE OKANDE
By OKANDE 9 years ago
River Road’s changing face
Colourful, spacious, what else in Lavington property?
Leafy suburbs located in the north-eastern parts of Nairobi, including Lavington, were for a long time the preserve of affluent individuals, with their enormous wealth manifested in the stylish bungalows.
By AUSTINE OKANDE 10 years ago
Colourful, spacious, what else in Lavington property?
Islamic home loans are a good financing alternative
There has been an increase in Islamic housing finance products across Islamic compliant banks, a move that has prompted conventional banks to offer such products. What is behind this trend?
By By AUSTINE OKANDE 10 years ago
Islamic home loans are a good financing alternative
Nairobi’s ‘Mad House’
Located prominently on the infamous Koinange Street (or K-Street as it is known to many) is a fascinating piece of architectural design of what used to be the New Florida Nightclub dubbed ‘Mad House’, a club whose recent closure sparked fond memories that characterised the Kenyan entertainment industry.
By Okande 10 years ago
Nairobi’s ‘Mad House’
Nairobi’s once feared building
Standing at the junction of Nairobi’s Uhuru Highway and Kenyatta Avenue, the once dreaded Nyayo House is unmistakable.
By OKANDE 10 years ago
Nairobi’s once feared building
Do homebuyers buy to let or to occupy?
Kenya’s property market has been booming over the last decade, with new homes being snapped up fast. But with reports indicating that only a fifth of Kenya’s urban dwellers live in their own houses, one would wonder whether home buyers do so for investment purposes or to live in them.
By AUSTINE OKANDE 10 years ago
Do homebuyers buy to let or to occupy?
Want to live longer? Drink alkaline water
The World Health Organisation (2011) survey lists Japans’ life expectancy at 83. This makes life expectancy in the Asian country the highest in the world.
By Austine Okande 10 years ago
Want to live longer? Drink alkaline water
Toxic trade in fakes as beauty and bleaching products in streets are harmfull
The case of a young Nairobian who buys beauty and bleaching products in the streets but ends up burning her face reveals the extent to which a billion-dollar counterfeit industry has grown.
By By AUSTINE OKANDE 10 years ago
Toxic trade in fakes as beauty and bleaching products in streets are harmfull
Counterfeit drugs include those for HIV, erectile dysfunction
According to KAM’s report, East Africa loses about US$ 500 million (Sh42.7bn) every year on counterfeit goods. The losses for Nairobi are believed to be a large percentage of this.
By By AUSTINE OKANDE 10 years ago
Counterfeit drugs include those for HIV, erectile dysfunction
Nairobi’s journey of rediscovery
It has always been seen as a point of transit, that point where Kenyans own a house and not home, this could be blamed partly on the city’s origin but does Nairobi have an identity? AUSTINE OKANDE combs through the city of many faces.
By AUSTINE OKANDE 10 years ago
Nairobi’s journey of rediscovery
Kenya's dance industry dancing to 'cash cash'
‘Godfathers of Kenyan commercial dance industry’ turn their skills into big business.
By By AUSTINE OKANDE 10 years ago
Kenya's dance industry  dancing  to 'cash cash'
Inaccessible city
If there are groups that many people with disabilities curse then it must be the architects, the engineers and vehicle makers.
By - AUSTIN OKANDE AND DAVID ODONGO 10 years ago
Inaccessible city
Brain and brawn wrapped in beauty
Who said beauty, brains and brawns cannot come in one package? TABBY ROSE WANJA, 26, rolls her sleeves everyday, gets her hands dirty then later transforms into a swan on the runway. She spoke to AUSTINE OKANDE
By - AUSTINE OKANDE 10 years ago
 Brain and brawn wrapped in beauty
CID stalling big car fraud case – victims
Police have been accused of stalling a case in which a city businesswoman and her husband have allegedly conned 60 people of Sh34 million in a car purchase scam.
By Austine Okande and David Odongo 10 years ago
CID stalling big car fraud case – victims
MPigs not taken for ‘grunted’ at care home
The 30 piglets and a sow recently used in a protest against MPs’ pay demands are happy and healthy, a charity has reported.
By By AUSTINE OKANDE 10 years ago
MPigs not taken for ‘grunted’ at care home
Harsh economic times straining relationships
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