Practitioners bear burden of restoring trust in property sector

Kenya’s real estate sector has been plagued by dishonesty, fraud, and a lack of integrity for far too long. As practitioners in the sector, we must face the harsh truth—we have failed our clients.

While the industry should be built on trust, some players have prioritised greed over service, leading to widespread skepticism among buyers, investors and the general public.

The result has been an erosion of confidence in the sector, slowing down investments and genuine development. Scams have become prevalent. Purchasing land in Kenya today often feels like playing Russian Roulette with one’s finances.

Buyers spend more time verifying the legitimacy of land transactions than focusing on the actual purchase and development.

This is not an unfounded fear—fraudulent land deals have become alarmingly common. A 2023 report by the Land Development and Governance Institute (LDGI) indicated that 61 per cent of land transactions in Kenya are riddled with legal disputes, many arising from double sales or fraudulent titles.

The root of the problem lies in the collusion among land surveyors, officials at the Ministry of Lands, and unscrupulous brokers. There have been countless cases where land that exists only on paper is ‘sold’ to unsuspecting buyers, or where a single parcel is double or even triple-sold to multiple investors.

The Judiciary continues to be overwhelmed with land disputes, with the Environment and Land Court (ELC) handling over 50,000 pending cases as of 2024.

Developers ought to do better. While fraud in land transactions has been a historical issue, the growing challenge in recent years has been the failure of real estate developers to deliver on their promises.

Many Kenyans have invested their hard-earned savings into off-plan housing projects, only to be left stranded when developers either fail to complete the projects or disappear entirely. In 2023 alone, the Kenya Property Developers Association reported that over Sh100 billion was lost to failed off-plan projects.

The collapse of several high-profile developments has further fueled public mistrust in the industry. The painful reality is that when one developer fails to deliver, it taints the reputation of the entire industry.

 A single dishonest developer ruins opportunities for three or more legitimate ones who genuinely aim to provide housing solutions.

The ripple effect is catastrophic, slowing down industry growth and making it difficult for honest developers to attract investment.

Self-regulation and accountability are the way. The real estate sector cannot afford to continue on this destructive path. It is time for practitioners to take decisive action.

We must adopt self-regulation mechanisms to weed out rogue players and restore credibility to the industry.

The government alone cannot fix this issue—we must take ownership and create systems that prioritise transparency, fairness, and professionalism. As developers and agents, we must go beyond the basics of land searches and advocate for thorough verification processes to include stricter due diligence measures.

This includes working closely with the Ministry of Lands to establish a more transparent land registry system that is resistant to fraud. Land prices in Kenya have skyrocketed, often driven by speculative investments and manipulations by cartels.

The sector needs a standardised valuation system to control exaggerated pricing, ensuring affordability for genuine investors and developers. It’s time for a fair land valuation index, and buyers should be equipped with better information on safe real estate investments.

Developers must embrace escrow accounts where buyers’ money is protected until projects reach agreed milestones. We need to collectively name and shame those who continue to exploit buyers. Reputable developers and agents must distance themselves from those with a history of fraudulent activities. Regulatory bodies like the Estate Agents Registration Board should maintain a public blacklist of offenders.

It’s time for industry blacklisting of fraudulent players (as directors), rather than as legal facelkess entities that morph to keep attacking.

Our duty to clients at the core of real estate is the responsibility to serve our clients with integrity.

We owe it to them to be honest, to share knowledge on effective due diligence, and to ensure that their investments are protected. As an agent and developer, I understand the weight of this responsibility.

It is frustrating to see a small group of people - 10 per cent — tainting the reputation of an industry.

It is our duty to clean up the sector, restore trust, and create an environment where buyers and investors feel secure in their transactions.

The writer is the CEO of Myspace Properties