Over 600,000 Kenyans not paying rent - Report

Titled the Kenya Housing Survey that covered the 2023/24 financial year, the report sought to provide a comprehensive analysis of the country's housing conditions to facilitate evidence-based planning. 

The report showed that 638,761 households did not pay monthly rent with the landlord's consent with tenants in Lamu County leading with 19 per cent followed by Mandera (18.9 per cent) and Nyandarua (12 per cent). 

Nairobi and Kiambu tenants who enjoy the privilege accounted for 51,507 and 74,782 households respectively. 

Additionally, 111,089 tenants avoided paying rent without the landlord's consent; potentially risking legal ramifications. Mandera led with 14 per cent,  followed by Lamu (9 per cent) and Garissa (6.2 per cent). 

Overall, the report showed that 8.5 million Kenyans were homeowners with the majority residing in rural areas (85.5 per cent) than urban areas. 

At the same time, 4.6 million tenants pay rent or have leased property nationwide. 

Nationally, more than half (52.8 per cent) of homeowners acquired their property through one-off construction, while 27.0 per cent were constructed incrementally. Only 2.5 per cent of the homes were purchased. 

The majority financed the projects through cash-savings (91.4 per cent) while 5.5 per cent took loans, 0.2 per cent took mortgages and 1.2 per cent received donations from relatives and friends. 

"Uptake of mortgage was low across the country with less than one per cent of households reporting to have acquired their homes through mortgages," the report read in part.  

Additionally, the report indicated that 71.8 per cent of tenants did not have a written agreement with their landlords while 28.2 per cent possessed the document. 

The document outlines the lease terms and legally protects the relationship between the tenant and the landlord. 

The counties of Kajiado (69.4 per cent), Taita Taveta (50.2 per cent), and Nairobi (40.5 per cent) had the highest proportion of tenants with written rent agreements. 

Interestingly, none of the households in Mandera County had a written rent agreement.

A large majority of the working population was from rural areas, with nearly equal distribution between men and women. 

The employment-to-population ratio was 61.6 per cent, with men more likely to be employed at 68.1 per cent compared to women at 55.1 per cent. 

In terms of unemployment rate, females had a higher rate of 11.5 per cent compared to men at 6.9 per cent. Urban areas experienced a higher unemployment rate of 12.5 per cent compared to 7.2 per cent in rural areas.