Property developers and individuals building homes will have to complete construction within five years or face penalties under a new law proposed by the government.
The Physical Planning Bill, 2015 say the five-year period will start once an investor is issued with a development permit. This will be a blow to those who prefer to build in stages and will also affect those who suspend construction after running out of funds.
“Where an applicant is granted development permission for building works, that applicant shall complete those building works within five years after receiving the development permission,” says the Bill sponsored by Leader of Majority Aden Duale.
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“The planning authority may impose conditions or impose a fine to be prescribed in regulations on an applicant for development permission for building works where the applicant fails to complete the building works within five years.”
The issuance of building permits is a county function and the devolved units will also be responsible for levying the fine or imposition of conditions. The Bill allows counties to make regulations for the implementation of the law and this means governors will have the powers to set the fines for those in breach of the planned five year rule.
Most Kenyans prefer to develop their homes in stages using savings and bank loans, delaying completion of some projects by years. This development model has been blamed on the high mortgage rates and upfront costs that is making it difficult for a majority of Kenyans to own homes financed by commercial banks.
Data from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) shows that the average size of mortgages increased to Sh7.5 million last year.
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