Cheap home building options in Kenya
What affordable options are out there in the Kenyan market? The model that a prospective home owner chooses – from a detached house to a high-rise apartment – depends on a number of factors, which include but are not limited to taste, preferences and available funds. However, each of the housing models has special requirements in terms of special planning and implications on building costs. With building materials taking up a big chunk of costs, it is important that aspiring home owners consider alternative, quality and economical building options. Here, we want to take a look at prefabricated houses and related forms of home-building being adopted in Kenya.
Prefabricated houses
Essentially, prefabricated or prefab homes are pre-developed houses made in a factory before being transported to a building site in bits – mainly in panels. They are subsequently assembled on-site in a matter of days. These pieces are appropriate to all kinds of climatic conditions. Globally, pre-fabricated structures come in various types but in Kenya, cost-conscious developers have a number of options to consider.
These include Expanded Polystyrene (EPS) technology, insulated panels, interlocking blocks and prefabricated or steel frames. Although prefabricated houses are not popular in Kenya, they have been preferred by low- to middle-income earners in advanced geographic locations such as the United States and Europe.
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For instance, Huf Haus, a German company, has been building high-end prefabricated houses since 1912. The trend has recently gained traction in Kenya with the entry of modular component suppliers. In 2012, for instance, the National Housing Corporation (NHC) put up a Sh1 billion factory in Mlolongo on Mombasa Road in an effort to cut costs for potential home owners. Koto Housing, an affordable housing and building solutions provider is also driving the growth of prefabricated housing.
International Green Structures (IGS), an American company that is currently completing a factory in Thika, is also bound to deepen the development of this building technique. Overall, prefabricated construction provides home developers, especially those in the medium to lower-income segments, with a custom, energy-efficient building solution. They are also typically more affordable than traditional brick-and-mortar or timber-made homes.