Duplexes the new homes of choice for young middle class

The Lofts Apartments in Kilimani, Nairobi, includes duplexes, which are catching on in the city. PHOTO | FILE

What you need to know:

  • If you do not want standalone home or a regular apartment, this type of house falls somewhere in between, offering you privacy but also coming with affordable shared facilities and security
  • Mr Mugo Mutembei, a contractor with Pacific Realty in Nairobi’s Ruai, also said that developers are increasingly putting up duplex homes to lure affluent home-seekers.
  • “Privacy is the main selling point. Buyers are drawn by the fact that they can separate their bedrooms and other private spaces (usually upstairs) from the living, dining and other entertainment areas downstairs,” he says.

When buying one’s first home, two options typically come to mind: a single-family home with its own compound, or a flat in an apartment. But there’s a third option – a duplex apartment.

Although the term duplex can be used to describe two identical houses that share a wall and the same yard, Mr Simon Ng’ang’a, the CEO of real estate firm Granite Capital, explains  that in Kenyan real estate terminology, a duplex refers to a single dwelling on two floors connected by an indoor staircase.

“A duplex is essentially an apartment with two stories. Apartments with three floors are referred to as triplexes, but they are not common in Kenya,” Mr Ng’ang’a adds.

He says duplex apartments are becoming increasingly popular among young couples looking for their first homes.

“Most of our clients ask specifically for duplex apartments. Many developers, too, are tired of the traditional apartments and are looking for new designs which offer the option of having a “single-family house” in a mixed-use setting,” he says. “While large, multi-family projects will certainly continue to be built, there appears to be an opportunity to create smaller, well-designed duplexes that gracefully integrate with existing single-family homes.”

AFFLUENT CUSTOMERS

For developers, putting up duplex apartments has proved to be a smart move. Mr Ng’ang’a points out that the city’s cosmopolitan population is increasing fast, and that the middle class average age is also coming down fast, which has led to the creation of a young, cosmopolitan middle class that does not want to live far from the city, but which cannot afford the standalone homes in Nairobi. The duplex offers an alternative to this predicament. Developers who put up duplexes instead of ordinary apartments reap big as rents range between Sh100,000 and Sh150,000.

Mr Ng’ang’a says that while initially demand for duplexes was a preserve of the expatriate community in areas like Runda, Gigiri, Westlands and Lavington, local home-seekers are also developing an appetite for the homes.

Mr and Mrs Evans Kajlich,  who recently bought a four-bedroom duplex home in Hurlingham, believe it’s ideal. 

“We hunted for a house in Nairobi for months but when we came to this duplex,  it just felt right and we bought it,” said Mr Kajlich. “Having an upper floor was the plus and it made the apartment feel more sophisticated. It’s more homely and it doesn’t feel like a flat or just any other apartment.”

Mr Mugo Mutembei, a contractor with Pacific Realty in Nairobi’s Ruai, also said that developers are increasingly putting up duplex homes to lure affluent home-seekers.

“Privacy is the main selling point. Buyers are drawn by the fact that they can separate their bedrooms and other private spaces (usually upstairs) from the living, dining and other entertainment areas downstairs,” he says.

“There’s something special about going upstairs to bed. It’s just psychological and very appealing. So, for most people who cannot afford a standalone maisonette, a duplex apartment offers something similar at a price they can afford,” Mutembei adds.

The ability to enjoy shared amenities at modest rates is another advantage of living in a duplex home. “A duplex offers the client the opportunity to live in gated community where common services and facilities like security, swimming pools and gyms are shared, thus reducing the costs to the tenants. These would otherwise be very expensive on standalone homes,” says Mr Ng’ang’a.

Most duplex apartments offer security that would be prohibitive if one lived in a standalone home. They might also offer uninterrupted power and water supply via back-up generators and storage tanks. Duplexes that are part of large developments usually have well-maintained gardens and jogging tracks.

Duplexes offer clients an opportunity to live in an apartment complex with fewer neighbours compared with a regular apartment. Though as tenant might still still be vulnerable to disturbances by bothersome neighbours, you have fewer of them to deal with.

“In areas like Kitisuru, Westlands, Kileleshwa and Lavington, an acre of land costs more than  Sh160 million. The price of land around Nairobi is ever rising, and  fewer people can afford to buy land and build a home on it. It thus makes more fiscal sense to buy a duplex,” Mr Ng’ang’a points out.