The real estate sector in Nairobi is booming, with multiple high-rise apartment buildings in areas like Kilimani and Kileleshwa sprouting every other day.
However, the mushrooming of such apartments has brought up a series of conflicting opinions on how fast these buildings are being developed.
To regulate these constructions, estates like Kitisuru, Runda, Karen, and Upperhill use associations to enforce land restriction rules. Some of these rules prohibit developers from building bedsitters, single rooms and even one-bedroom houses in such areas.
To implement the laid out policies, land buyers and developers are required to sign purchase agreements with clear designs of the structures they intend to set up.
Some of the reasons for adopting such policies include a desire to increase land value and tame the mushrooming of slums and other low-income developments that are usually associated with crime.
Issues of water shortages, faulty electrical connections and improper sewerage disposal also influence the decision to implement such policies to maintain the ambience of the estates.
Despite the pressure to revise some of their policies, such estates have upheld the land restriction policies. For example, through elected representatives, the Runda Residents Association and Karen Residents Association have always engaged developers in legal battles to protect the estate’s prestige.
Some of these estates, including Runda, Kitisuru and Karen, have even banned public service vehicles from accessing the estates. Entertainment joints such as bars, clubs and even eateries are also banned in these areas.
