Mizizi Africa Homes has forecasted increased activity in the real estate sector over the next quarter with positive prospects on affordable housing provision with a phased re-opening of the economy.
The developer says the partial lockdown effected to curb the spread of COVID-19 in the country down had forced many players in the sector to cut down on the number of workers on sites and disrupted supply chains including intermittent access to construction material shops that impacted on project delivery timelines.
“We expect most activities to gradually return to optimum levels to correct longer development periods, a situation we had been pushed into by the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Mizizi Africa Homes Operations Director, George Mburu in a statement to newsrooms on Thursday.
“A longer lockdown period meant that developer operational costs of completing housing units also rose on reduced incomes. This situation if sustained would have threatened sustainability and existence of developers,” he added.
Subdued economic activity also meant that installment collections for off-plan units were slightly disrupted on account of delayed payments as investors became risk-averse.
An estimated 300,000 people in the country have lost their jobs since Kenya reported its first case of coronavirus in March. It is also projected many more Kenyan could be left jobless over the next six months.
“Gradual re-opening of the economy should be able to reverse adverse effects on job losses, savings and investment funds held by potential home-owners,” said Mburu.
Despite the negative impact of the pandemic on the real estate sector, Mizizi Africa remains optimistic the sector will take an upward trajectory, especially due to commitments and concerted efforts towards affordable housing provision by government and private sector players.
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