17% Of Kenyan Tycoons To Buy A Home In 2021

17 percent of ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWIs) in Kenya are planning to buy a new home in 2021 according to Knight Frank’s The Wealth Report 2021, with Kenya as their most popular destination, followed by the UK, US, South Africa, and Canada.

“The Wealth Report confirms a clear rise in demand for residential property as wealthy Kenyans look to buy a new home this year,” Ben Woodhams, Knight Frank Kenya MD, said.

Knight Frank Kenya in December 2020, conducted another survey that indicated demand for a second home amongst their clients, especially with a strong focus on rural and coastal properties that have access to open space.

“The pandemic is super-charging demand for locations that offer green spaces as more people are increasingly focused on wellness as they spent a great deal of 2020 at home, working remotely,” Ben added.

Only 19 percent of Kenyan HNWIs are considering applying for a second passport or new citizenship, indicating that they see many of the opportunities to create wealth lie at home. This compares with 39 percent of wealthy Chinese and a whopping 62 percent of HNWIs in Nigeria.

Respondents in the Attitudes Survey also revealed that Covid-19 is by far the biggest current worry for the Kenyan wealthy when it comes to creating and preserving their wealth.

The Knight Frank Wealth Sizing Model shows that Kenya’s population of HNWIs  slipped by 22 percent last year, compared with a global decline of just 8 percent

“Our wealth sizing model predicts that over the next five years Kenya’s High-Net-Worth individuals (HNW) population will bounce back by 46 percent,” said Knight Frank.

“Many may ask why are we interested in the wealthy in the middle of a pandemic? The objective of The Wealth Report is to assess how and where the ‘one – percent” are investing and what they are likely to do next,” Andrew Shirley, editor of The Wealth Report at Knight Frank said.

Wealth advisers who participated in the Survey in 2020 stated that their Kenyan clients allocated their property investment portfolio in the following property types: Residential private rented sector (PRS) (22%), Retail (17%), Offices (14%) and Retirement (13%).

The top 5 popular sectors that Kenyan UHNWIs are becoming more interested in and directing investments towards are: Retirement & Development land (38%), Residential private rented sector (PRS) (33%), Agricultural (29%), Healthcare & Retail (25%) and Offices (21%).

 “Even though 2020 caused upheaval for most businesses and investors, there is renewed optimism in 2021 that as travel restrictions reduce and the rollout plans of the vaccination programs reach an advanced stage, private capital will look to increase exposure back to the market and focus on sectors with a strong long-term outlook,” Knight Frank Kenya MD Ben Woodhams noted.