Okowa Nashon
@OkowaNashon
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Director @BeaconAfricaLtd :|| Project Manager :|| Author: @dontbuythathou2 : @The7Ruleso28321 : @TheAbnormalstu1 :|| Writer :|| Chairman Emeritus, @acmk_ke |
Nairobi, Kenya
Joined February 2012
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"There will be obstacles. There will be doubters. There will be mistakes. But with hard work, there are no limits."
— Michael Phelps,
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A MERE leak on a roof, you’ve formed a 11 member expert committee. To do what other than squander more taxpayer money. This work can be done by a singular consultant and deliver a report promptly.
Give me the job, I will do it probono!
We joke too much in this country!
#JKIA
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I HAVE SAID AND WRITTEN much about this but allow me repeat for the umpteenth time; Due diligence on land is not just a search at lands office. Here are 4 other ways to carry out land due diligence:-
~ THREAD
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THIS IS PANGANI; the four buildings you see have been developed in the last 4yrs or so. But the infrastructure growth is my concern.The roads,sewer, storm water etc have remained the same.Tell me; How will this city cope with such? What is really our urban agenda?
@SakajaJohnson
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So I have this project that we are managing. When we began Cement was 520/-,now it it 720/-. To cast a slab the contractor uses about 2,400 bags. This now translates to 480k loss per slab. It will be about Ksh 3M overall loss for the remaining slabs. Na haujaweka columns. Wueh!
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LISTEN; if you’re going to get a loan from a bank or sacco to build your house or for any other construction, pay close attention to the Bills of Quantity. Repeat after me; Pay utmost attention to the content of the BQ - go through it like your life depends on it.
Otherwise you
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YOU people are renting apartments then putting them on Airbnb. To get what returns? Enlighten me…
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SURELY! Who is the architect? Higher centers of learning should give us iconic buildings that improve our architectural landscape. Pan intended…
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IMAGINE we were treated to this BRT circus for 5yrs. Even the red lipstick that was painted on the road faded. “The life of a nation is secure only while the nation is honest, truthful, and virtuous.” ~Frederick Douglass
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YOU ARE buying a 3 bed house at Ksh 14Million to rent at Ksh 50k per month. In a market that clearly has no much capital growth potential. You really need to frame and understand your real estate investment thesis before jumping in. A lot of what people are doing is grossly
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@RobertAlai
Robert, you are dragging us into your personal vendetta with Uhuru and Gachagua that started way before the demos. Handle your issues…
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I HAD a painful conversation with a diaspora client referred to me.Finished an apartment, spendings 118M,yet it remains largely vacant 8months down the line. Reason;the tenants are offering quite low rents than expected.Please do CMAs & feasibility study before projects; Please!
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RIVERSIDE, Westlands, Parklands etc is replete with buildings on riparian reserves. Some that have even diverted river courses. But we demolished only slums. In this country, you are guilty until proven rich. The poor, unfortunately, continue to shoulder the cost of impunity.
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👇 👇👇 THE SITE I highlighted here, sometimes last year, is actually the one that has collapsed this evening along Naivasha Road. Reinforces precisely what I was talking about. The construction had actually been marked by NCA, but again….
IT’S DIFFICULT to conceive, much less to believe that we created a robust construction industry watchdog and failed to give it teeth to bite. We have reduced such an authority to merely applying red lipstick on building and recommending arrests.
Give NCA
@ncakenya
the arrest and
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WRONG:
1. You say 10sqm single room is built at Kes 800,000
2. Rent/month is Kes 2500
3. Annual rent is 2500x12 = 30,000
4. Rental yield based on above is 3.75% not the 20%-30% you’re taking about.
You got the cost of construction totally wrong.
THREE THINGS you don’t appreciate
A 10 sqm Mukuru sized single room works out to Sh800,000. A Sh200m Muthaiga/Runda property translates to 250 Mukuru sized bedsits which at Sh2500 is Sh625.000 pm, 2.5 Runda/Muthaiga rents. And that is “ social housing” segment i.e for the lowest income groups.
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EVERYTHING in this statement stinks but maybe it’s my nose:-
1. Never heard of a property buyer who got occupation with 10% deposit. You are the first…
2. Never heard of property buyer who made payment without an agreement. What was the rush?
2. Didn’t the Sacco require a
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HOUSING FUND; I’m opposed to it, not for expediency sake, it is a hoax. This is why…
You’ve capped the total employer and employee contribution at Ksh 5k for 7yrs. How much is that in total?
5000 x 12 x 7 = 420,000. What affordable house can this money buy?
OKAY, assume even
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WHEN are we OUTLAWING the use of gypsum on ceilings in this country? The hype and hoopla needs to be stopped now. My Goodness! Never has a product in the construction industry been this cheerfully misused & abused.
Whoever said gypsum ceiling is a proof of opulence deserves the
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TAKE the entire State Department of Housing to Angola’s ghost town - Nova Cidade de Kilamba, just outside Luanda capital city (image below). The near empty mixed residential development of 750 eight-storey apartment buildings. The project mirrors us since it was birthed as well
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WUEH!!!
Telposta waited for years while this property was being developed in Kileleshwa, watched as innocent public sink in their savings and loans buying units, only to do this when people have even moved in.
I really sympathize with the buyers.
#dontbuythathouse
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KENYANS have elected a President with his deputy, Governors, Senators, Mps and MCAs. There are as well multiple commissions.
We don’t need another NATIONAL
FORUM COMMITTEE to be the representative of the people.
If all those elected cannot adequately represent the views of
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WE HAVE CREATED a contractor generation, at the cheer of procurement officers, that is mindful of nothing other than to be the lowest bidder. We have carefully molded ‘lowest bidder contractors’ in this country and are painfully paying the price for it. The guarded ethos of
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THE BEDROCK of the construction industry corruption is carried by your ministry. Kickbacks is another word for your ministry and here you are raising a glass. In serious democracies, JKIA issue alone would have made you resign long time ago. Sit down!
The ongoing national conversation is important and must not stop.
I'm happy to provide clarity on the state of affairs with regards to our transport infrastructure.
For the last two years, we have, for instance, been grappling with pending bills amounting to Ksh 165 billion.
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SIMBA CEMENT must clarify on this video. Outside the outright theft, the ramifications of such a short cut can be dire and cannot, shouldn’t, be left unchallenged. This is bonkers!
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I DON’T get the feasibility rationale of the Nairobi - Mombasa Expressway. Highly doubt the numbers would make sense more so with a functioning SGR. The more pragmatic idea would be to do either Nairobi/Eldoret or Nairobi/Kisumu expressways. Anyway…
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THE THINDIGUA sinking building drew me back to an article I wrote nearly 5years ago. We need to have a legislation that provides for mandatory warranty for all new buildings.
In several advanced countries, insurance has been the answer to this uncertainty. In the UK for
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WE NEED to return some level of shame in this country. After the recent painful unbridled tears Lesedi caused many property buyers, they are back boldly displaying a billboard. The AUDACITY…
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KENYANS have issues with lies in the Finance Bill. If you want money to cushion against external shocks, just plainly say so. Don’t conceal it in fictitious, unfeasible initiatives like housing fund. Tell Kenyans the truth, it shall set you free.
@DavidNdii
People with issues with Finance Bill, sit down, write an alternative budget that cushions external shocks without IMF, brings down deficit with no tax measures. And do the numbers. As Sam Rayburn said “Any jackass can kick down a barn but it takes a carpenter to build one.”
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@BiancaNaom1
KNH is not a kiosk hospital, there are procedures to waiving hospital bills. Please show us a memo communication from the CEO, or whoever, waiving all hospital bills. We need to arrive at a point in this country where we hold people accountable for what they say.
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THE CONSTRUCTION AND REAL ESTATE industry, with its expanse contributes about 14% to our GDP, and employs about 600k workers of which 60% are informal.
No miracle will take that to 18million jobs, not even Housing levy. These are fantasies on steroids.
Did you know that 30,000 Kenyans have been contributing to the Housing Fund already. They have raised Ksh 1.8 Billion already. With gearing I can easily get investors to multiply this to Ksg 45 Billion of houses (25X). That's 18,000 houses at a cost of Ksh 2.5 Million. Each
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PLEASE do all the above before paying a penny. Don't be in a rush,Kenya’s land size is 582,646 km², we're far from being full.
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I GET INTO TROUBLE if I talk but it is what it is. We must stop the commercialization of these professional bodies. Ksh 20k for a conference that is in Nairobi yet you also have a myriad of sponsor companies is an overreach. You’re killing upcoming young professionals. Anyway…
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THERE IS A DEVELOPER selling houses off-plan while the land is not yet transferred in their name, only has the sale agreement, and they haven’t acquired construction statutory approvals. Kenyans are busy buying in mass. Is it the law of God that our people must live in perpetual
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1. Local administrators: Sometimes we forget that there are Chiefs and Assistant Chiefs even in cities/towns hence we overlook them. These people’s insights on land history is invaluable. They will tell you a family history not in any book. Don’t demur their rich knowledge.
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LET ME REPEAT for those who have just joined us; In the Real Estate, there is no substitute for honesty and integrity. Not even prime advertisements or huge billboards. It will catch up with you at some point, and it’s not even up to you to decide when.
#Cytonn
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SO GOVERNMENT basically signed a return to work formula with itself. Ostensibly to return government back to work. 🤣
We joke too much in this country.
@kmpdu
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IN 2018 I wrote a letter to the DG
@KeNHAKenya
complaining about the poor construction of the Muhoroni-Kipsitet junction road. They responded, Regional Manager called, contractor returned to site momentarily, did some make-up work then quickly vanished.
Picture 2 is the current
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@josephnyabera
I’m a writer!
“Writers don't give prescriptions. They give headaches!”
Chinua Achebe,
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THE FINANCE BILL 2024 is curiously, already, proposing amendment of the Affordable Housing Act. We have barely finished reading the Act since its creation recently and amendment is being proposed.
Be that as it may, I have concerns with this proposed amendment. Here is why:-
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TO THE BEGINNING Project managers, here are 6 rules to kickstart you practice this year:-
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2. County office: Check for instance who has been paying the land rates or who should be. This will give you insight on who you're dealing with or supposed to deal with. Also, confirm if there was an attempted subdivision especially for land pieces of land.
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TO THOSE starting off their careers in the construction industry, here are some unvarnished lessons I have learnt in my relatively long career:
👇
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THINK ABOUT Service Charge before buying a house. Here is how and why.
- THREAD -
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4. Survey: Please do land surveys before paying a penny. Land sizes on many titles you see around don't marry with what is on the ground. Literally,randomly visit to site of land, talk to the janitor next door, the bodaboda guy and so on. Get information - everything you can.
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@DehMao
I’m aware, and I’m not flaking about them. The majority who invest in real estate actually don’t launder money.
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@DavidOsiany
@AokoOtieno_
Actually, you’ve let this lady get too far with her disrespect. Whatever it takes, however long it takes, deal with it.
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WE NEED A ONE-STOP construction approval process. You walk into one office, apply and pay for all the approvals there. Construction approval process in Kenya is TOO SLOW, TOO FAR AWAY, TOO EXPENSIVE and sometimes considered TOO CORRUPT to be bothered with. Part of the reason for
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WHAT IF we passed a regulation that all off-plan housing sales only commences when a project is say 30% complete? Wouldn’t we begin to weed out the crook, spurious and phony developers?
#mythoughts
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@AnneWaiguru
@WilliamsRuto
@rigathi
@MusaliaMudavadi
@Wetangulam
Madam Governor, She said you can take the matter to court tomorrow with that evidence.
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3. Utility bills: Kicks in mostly if there is a structure of some sort on the piece of land. Check who the water/power meter is registered to or who has been paying the bills. If a tenant has been paying probably they know the real owner, talk to them.
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SO 9 STEEL COMPANIES colluded to drive the steel prices up in the construction industry. We suspected something was amiss but couldn’t put our hands to it. This penalty though is too lenient! The excruciating pain this coordinated greed brought to stakeholders in the industry is
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@RobertAlai
No, it is a choice. Is there any hard question the President hasn’t been asked? And what will happen to the ‘hard questions’ after being asked? Action not words…
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YES, I have seen that KCB is set to auction 100 home owners at Great Wall Garden over a loan that was taken by the developer Ederman Property. Sometimes back, I suggested that the government introduce a regulation requiring developers to disclose loans they take to buyers.
The
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@MutahiNgunyi
If these are the advisors the President has then he is till in deep problem. Smell the coffee Mutahi, nobody sponsored the protests.
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POOR PROJECT PLANNING is the major reason why most public projects, nearly all, experience wanton cost and time overruns. Many of our projects are not being properly conceived through planning - they are hurried and harried.
Look at this; on October 19th, KR admits the project
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Yaani KRA is holding & demanding taxes on donated ARVs yet people are on verge of missing their doses. This Country need to be yellow taped all round as a crime scene. From Mombasa to Mandera to Turkana to Busia...piga tape. The circus. The greed. The audacity. Decidedly bespoke.
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SO PROUD of you! Dad would have been even prouder.
@Phoebe_Okowa
Namibia at ICJ: Israel's entry to UN was based on having a Palestinian state
Prof Phoebe Okowa, Namibia's representative at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), asked the court to pay particular attention to the historical context of the proceedings and went on to say that
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THE WORST is when a PS calls me an Engineer. What is it with this country and calling everyone in the construction industry an Engineer?
Foreman - Engineer
Fundi - Engineer
Contractor - Engineer
Architect - Engineer
Quantity Surveyor - Engineer
Construction Manager -
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Every Kenyan has a right to housing, not ownership, under Article 43 1 (b). Don’t conflate the two. Ownership is in the bottom list of most Kenyans.
President
@WilliamsRuto
today on the Housing Fund:
Every Kenyan deserves to own a home.
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I STOPPED managing single dwelling couple projects, except in exceptional cases. They tyrannize you with everything; all the differences that have ever existed in their marriage is usually resurrected in the project. They seemingly won’t agree on anything - the World War III is
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IT’S DIFFICULT to conceive, much less to believe that we created a robust construction industry watchdog and failed to give it teeth to bite. We have reduced such an authority to merely applying red lipstick on building and recommending arrests.
Give NCA
@ncakenya
the arrest and
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75,000??? And why Naivasha???
If we are serious about seeing changes in professional development in the built environment, we must demand that the brazen COMMERCIALIZATION of professional bodies stop, pronto.
Take such trainings to public institutions.
@EngineersBoard
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I PUBLISHED this sometimes last year. The 4 common mistakes we make while building in the village. Here is link:
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ASK YOUR favourite Governor how many registered Engineers & Architects does he have at Nairobi County to approve & supervise developments. You will be utterly shocked at the caliber of people approving & inspecting these mega projects. Most don’t even have a clue…iko shida kubwa
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I’M COUNTING 5 ongoing developments just as you start Juja road after Pangani girls. Pangani itself is a construction site. Eastleigh? Don’t even start. Okay, but back it up with organic infrastructure improvements as well.
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THE RECENTLY launched Chinese Property Developers Association is a JOKE. No, it is a shameful joke that should be condemned and resisted. So what will be next; Chinese Engineers Association? Italians Contractors Association? Or Mongolian Architects Association? Why not join the
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OUR RIGHT to a working City is the most basic. You will not erode it with recklessness and greed. Needless to remind you that this was the drug of choice of all your predecessors, and they failed. We are aware of our urbanization and population growth rate, all we want is a
“Stop complaining, we will build up to 25 floors in Nairobi,” Governor Sakaja tells Kileleshwa, Lavington residents
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MAKE PUBLIC all existing road maintenance contracts
@kipmurkomen
. Start with Thika superhighway.
We know from our insights in this industry that this is the new oil of theft. Deal with the wanton corruption in road maintenance contracts and you have money to maintain our roads.
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NOTABLY, based on my previous article, a friend in Australia shared this article with me. NEW ZEALAND government actually ditched the lowest prices model of procurement for construction contracts. A number of countries are considering the same. We need to follow PRONTO.
It’s a
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I Did AN INVESTMENT analysis of Studio & 1Bed apartments at Tsavo (Kiambu), Zima homes (Wangige) and Kings Boma Estate (Ruiru) developments, for a client who is interested in purchase for investment. BOTTOM LINE; pay laser attention to the projected rent being thrown at you.
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PEOPLE with no idea of project planning, no idea of a project’s life cycle.
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YOU’VE curiously left out the registration number of the Contractor. Is the contractor registered with NCA? If so, parade the registration number as well.
@ncakenya
Good Morning. Here is the press brief on the Mirema collapse. ^WK
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I WILL MOVE to court to challenge the new Building Code on the basis that it is profoundly discriminatory. As I have stated before, a government cannot, should not, discriminate against its own people. Government cannot start courses in the built environment, call people to do
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BE WARY of the READY MIX concrete company you are using on your sites. Recently, we banned a renowned ready mix concrete company from being used on one of our projects. In fact, I have stopped using them on any of my projects. They had a plethora of integrity issues. Now I get
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IN REAL ESTATE you will be sold the SIZZLING not the STEAK.Your duty before paying a penny is to find the steak.The most sold sizzling is the house renders - beautiful images that sometimes, most times, has no bearing to what will be built.Sizzling is good but get the steak also.
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@EsauBusiega
I’m talking about the transfer not getting the loan. You need a fully executed sale agreement to transfer that kind of money that kind money.
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An audit was to be done on all buildings in Nairobi after the Huruma incident. Where is the report? Inexcusable!
#KwareBuildingCollapse
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I KEEP a simple rule of investment; Any investment that doesn’t allow me to double my money in 5yrs or less is a NO! However appealing or lucrative…
And it has and is working for me!
Happy to expound to anyone interested.
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PEOPLE own up to 10 construction companies even more. I was once told of a Governor, now former Governor, who owned 27 construction companies all with NCA licenses. How can that be so if people at NCA do their work?People are now bidding against themselves in tenders. Reboot NCA!
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WHEN Kileleshwa petrol station was being demolished,I remember being hosted by
@YussufIbra
at KTN news.I understand the plot is now being developed again, licensed by the very authorities that did the demolition.What we are asking
@NemaKenya
&
@ncakenya
is; what has changed? 1/..
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THE SIZE of some bedroom units in Kilimani developments is equal to a master bedroom toilet in Karen. GREED is indeed a permanent slavery.
#DontBuyThatHouse
@DONTBUYTHATHOU2
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TODAY NCA licenses are being auctioned at market price. With between 300k-200k I’m told you can walk away with NCA 1,2&3 license in two days, regardless of who you are - people with no clue about construction. These are chaps messing many public projects around. Reboot NCA!
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IF YOU’RE ever going to have a swing at managing a project successfully, you must run away from managing people. Don’t believe the tacit, indoctrinating, contemporary mantra that suggest this as the only way. Save for bloodythisty tyrants, people are impossible to manage; they
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PROJECT MANAGER:
My daily work largely revolves around managing construction projects from feasibility, design and construction stage until handover. I love what I do!
@BeaconAfricaLtd
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THIS IS PLANNING FALLACY at its peak.
Building 100 big dams in 5yrs means building 20 dams per year, 5 dams every three months and 1.6 dams every month.
1000 dams in 5yrs means building 16 dams every month, 50 dams every 3 months & 200 dams every year.
Nothing to add!
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THERE ARE more than 60 laws governing the Construction and Real Estate sector. Still it’s highly fragmented and stubbornly fractured. Ask me to why?
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I ALWAYS tell my clients when buying property; ‘NEVER sign the letter of offer without knowing the content of the sale agreement.’ All property sales monkey games are played there, especially off plan. You must know them before you commit a penny.
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I HAVE SAID it time and again; FLOODING in this city is just starting - buckle up. Nairobi County approves and supervises unplanned & uncoordinated developments on water and sewer lines throughout the year then purports to open a few manholes in the name of flooding preparations.
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@King_Mutaih
Rent where for 10k - 20k?
What is the cost of furnishing, maintenance etc? Is 36k net or gross?
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THESE ARE NOT ORDINARY times to run projects in the luxury casualness synonymous with most of our public projects. My opinion in today’s
@PeopleDailyKe
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KISUMU COUNTY and generally the Western side of Kenya Counties must be ingenious and come up with ways to attract Real Estate investors. There is little going on in this region; it’s too slow there. Start even with having ‘The Great Lake Real Estate Expo’ create some vibe. No?
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