Kenya’s homeownership rate declined from 64 percent in 2013 to 61 percent in 2024 as the number of renters and squatters outgrew new homeowners. This defied a widely publicised plan by the government to increase home-ownership, especially in urban areas.
The recently published Housing Survey report by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics reveals deep insights into the home ownership trends in the country, explaining why the government’s affording housing plan is yet to boost home ownership in the country.
An additional 2.6 million households now own their own units, an increase of 44 percent since 2013. In total, 8.5 million families now live in their own houses, compared to 5.4 million a decade ago.
This is a 44 percent rise, but the population grew much faster at 51 percent, resulting in the shrinking of the overall rate of home ownership.
Renters and squatters, on the other hand, rose from 3.3 million in 2013 to 5.4 million last year, a rise of 2.1 million or 64 percent.
Ideally, the government wants the total number of home owners to exceed renters because of the reduced vulnerability and economic stability associated with that.
However, Kenya’s home ownership rate appears to be driven mostly by rural ownership, while majority in urban areas continue to rent.
How does ownership in rural areas compare with urban areas?
In rural Kenya, where about 60 percent of Kenyans reside, home ownership is currently at 85 percent. In contrast, only 22 percent of urban dwellers own homes, a sharp drop from 23 percent in 2013.
This means that even as the population in Kenyan cities increased by 1.7 million families over the 10-year period, a majority that migrated from rural areas opted to rent as new home owners in urban settings rose by just 133,305.
Which counties have the lowest and highest home ownership rates?
Vihiga, West Pokot, Wajir, Bomet, and Turkana have the highest home ownership rates in the country, with over 86 percent of their residents living in their own homes, much higher than the national average of 61 percent.
Nairobi has the lowest home ownership rate, at 7.7 percent, and the highest rate of renters, at 88 percent. Nairobi is home to 1.6 million households, about nine percent of the country’s total population, and where the housing crisis is worst. Mombasa follows Nairobi in low home ownership rate, at 24 percent, followed by Kajiado and Lamu, at 41 percent and 44 percent.
What factors determine Kenyans’ choice of owning or renting homes?
Over half of Kenyans that rent homes do so to be close to their workplaces, while 41 percent choose to rent because their homes are in rural areas but want to live in urban setups.
Other factors influencing people to rent rather than own are closeness to schools or other social amenities, insecurity, change of status, inadequate space, and avoiding to stay with tenants.
The vast majority of Kenyans who currently don’t own homes (62 percent) have no plans whatsoever towards home ownership, meaning that the government’s affordable housing plan has not and probably won’t convince people to consider buying homes.
Just 25 percent are currently saving towards purchase land or to buy or construct a house. 2.8 percent are planning on taking a loan to construct or buy land or a house.
Where do Kenyans source income for home acquisition?
The KNBS survey reveals that 91 percent of Kenyans who own homes have used their savings to acquire them, while just 5.7 percent utilised loans or mortgages.
This means that a few Kenyans might be willing to take up a loan to finance their acquisition of the affordable units constructed by the government, further complicating the push for increased home ownership in urban areas.
How does Kenya’s home ownership compare with neighbours?
Kenya’s home ownership rate is the second lowest in the region, after Somalia, where conflict and recurrent droughts have constantly displaced people from their homes.
In Uganda, home ownership is currently estimated at 76 percent, while in Tanzania, it’s estimated at 65 percent, according to World Population Review.
