NCBA taps Kenya’s self-build trend with structured financing solution

NCBA Easy-Build solution provides a practical response to the country’s growing self-build market, following industry data showing that a majority of Kenyan homeowners prefer to construct their own homes.

According to the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) Housing Survey 2025, 68% of Kenyan homes are self-constructed, reflecting a strong preference among homeowners for greater control over design, pace, and cost. The findings come against the backdrop of a housing deficit estimated at 2 million units, with annual demand for 250,000 homes far exceeding supply of approximately 50,000 units.

While self-build remains the preferred route to homeownership, the process is often slowed by major challenges, including limited access to structured financing, cost overruns, hidden construction expenses, weak project oversight, and fraud across parts of the building value chain.

“The housing conversation in Kenya often centres on mortgages and completed homes, yet the reality is that most Kenyans are building for themselves, often step by step,” says Dennis Njau, Group Director, Retail Banking, NCBA. Easy-Build was designed around this owner-builder reality giving customers a more structured way to build, with the financing and expert support needed to reduce stress, improve visibility, and bring more confidence into the process.”

Easy-Build combines financing with end-to-end project support, giving customers access to architectural, engineering, structural, and financial advisory services throughout the construction journey. The model is designed to help customers plan better, manage costs more effectively, and monitor progress with greater confidence from groundbreaking to completion.

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The solution has proved particularly attractive to Kenyans in the diaspora, many of whom want to invest in building back home but face practical challenges in supervising projects remotely.

“Trust is a major issue in the construction sector, especially for customers who are not physically present to oversee their projects,” adds Njau. “For many Kenyans, particularly those in the diaspora, the fear of fraud, stalled works, or mismanaged funds can delay the dream of homeownership. By bringing financing, professional support, and structure into one solution, Easy-Build helps address that trust gap and gives customers more control over the process.”

By aligning financing with project support, NCBA continues to live out its Ubuntu strategy by empowering customers with practical solutions that respond to everyday realities, while helping more Kenyans navigate the path to homeownership with greater confidence. The Easy-Build value proposition is a key anchor to this year’s 2026 NCBA Meet, Mingle and Money Talks engagements, a financial literacy knowledge sharing platform for the Bank’s Young Professionals and Emerging Affluent target clientele.