Ten things to verify before you commit to your first property in Kenya — from title searches to the questions nobody thinks to ask about service charges.
Buying your first home is the largest financial decision most people ever make, and it is usually made under emotional pressure and time constraints. A checklist will not remove the emotion, but it will stop you skipping the things that matter.
Before you view
Get your financing clarity first. Know what a lender will actually advance you, what the deposit needs to be, and what the monthly repayment looks like at a rate two points higher than today's. If that number frightens you, adjust your budget, not your assumptions.
At the property
Visit twice — once in daylight and once in the evening. Check water pressure at the tap. Ask where the water actually comes from and what happens when it fails. Look at the roofline, the drainage and the walls near ground level for damp.
On paper
Commission an independent title search — do not rely on a copy handed to you. Confirm the land rates and rent are clear. If it is a scheme, read the sale agreement's completion and default clauses properly, and ask what the service charge covers and how it is set.
“Every unpleasant surprise in a property purchase was documented somewhere nobody read.”
Before you sign
Use your own advocate, not the developer's. Confirm the payment account is a project account. Get the specification schedule in writing. And make sure the handover conditions — what 'complete' means — are defined in the contract rather than in a conversation.
None of this is glamorous. All of it is cheaper than the alternative.
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