First survey in 30 years to inform housing sector

The Ministry of Housing recently commissioned the Kenya National Housing Survey 2011/2012, which is expected to provide data that will give a better understanding of supply and demand in the property market, as well as provide solutions for housing problem, writes NJOKI CHEGE.

The property industry is arguably one of the most lucrative and fastest growing investments in the country, but it is also riddled with lack of proper, accurate data that can be used to make investment decisions. There is, therefore, need for a thorough survey that will put an end to speculation when it comes to investing in this industry.

The Kenya National Housing Survey 2011/2012 is being carried out by the Ministry of Housing with support from the Kenya Institute of Public Policy Research and Analysis (Kippra), the Kenya Property Developers Association (KPDA) and real estate consultancy Scion Real.

Laila Macharia, (Chairperson, Kenya Property Developers Association)

"Government planners including the Ministry of Housing, its strategic partners and key informants will be better positioned to help in unlocking the sector’s potential by providing the required data to local and foreign investors who have shown interest in tapping into this robust growth," says Kosgey.

Performance measurement will benefit and inform important programme implementation processes as well as guide decisions on various interventions at local and national levels.

The PS also notes that the housing indicators collected will feed into housing policy decisions and enhance knowledge about the housing sector.

Besides furnishing the industry with sufficient data in the property industry, the survey is also geared towards assessing housing needs and providing viable solutions for the housing sector. The survey will provide a basis for the review and attuning of the national housing policy to the new Constitutional order.

According to Macharia, this is a complex, large survey. It requires fieldwork in all counties as well as in specialised groups. There will be a household survey targeting owner-occupiers and renters as well as specific, smaller surveys of key building sector players — developers (formal and informal), professionals, financiers and public agencies.

The survey will consist of two main components: The household survey, which consists all the 47 counties, including the major urban areas and rural urban areas.

The other component will involve the key informants such as housing professionals, housing financiers, housing developers and regulatory bodies.

KNBS will be executing the survey as they have the mandate to produce government statistics, decades of exceptional experience and expertise in the field. KNBS also has access to pre-determined survey clusters, field offices and data collectors that make them quite efficient in pulling together data from around the country. While KNBS had carried out a similar research in the 2009 census, this survey is different because the National Housing Survey seeks detailed questions from different players in the housing sector.

Says Macharia: "It has the goal of establishing the status of supply, which was covered briefly in the census at a very high level, in far more detail. This survey also looks at behavioural choices informing supply and demand and also goes in-depth with builders, financiers, professionals and even regulators to see how these groups are helping or hindering housing supply."

The outcome, Macharia says, will be robust and rich data that will be in public domain for various uses.