Sh700,000 for land in the US? Firm says it’s a real deal

An international property firm has come looking for Kenyans to buy plots of land for investment in the US.

The Sternon Group is wooing Kenyan investors with 4,500 square feet plots in Florida, US, which are going for Sh700,000, on which they can construct houses.

However, the price does not include the sale transactions or land rates to which potential buyers are subjected, which could significantly push up the cost.

Analysts say it is difficult to sell property in the American market at the moment.

“The US market is in recession now. They (Sternon Group) is looking for people to buy the properties at very competitive rates.

Those are the kinds of deals you cannot get here,” said HassConsult’s head of research and marketing, Ms Sakina Hassanali.  

The multinational, which has enlisted HassConsult’s services, operates in the US, Africa, India, Dubai and Australia.

The plots it is selling have amenities like water and electricity, hospitals, a golf course and educational institutions.  

“This investment is ideal for medium-term holding to gain from a significant profit on capital gain in the future,” The Sternon Group said.

It revealed that the during the 2008-2009 property boom in the US, the Florida properties were going for between $50,000 (Sh4.35 million) and $60,000 (Sh5.22 million).  

Florida is a favourite tourist destination, attracting millions of tourists every year, and is home to Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando city. This is besides other amusement parks.

Meanwhile, The Mortgage Company Managing Director, Ms Caroline Kariuki, says many global property investors are now targeting Kenyan buyers for their real estate projects.

“This is because their markets are saturated and the investors are now looking to markets like Kenya for buyers.

Kenyans are also still hungry for investments, especially in the real estate sector,” Ms Kariuki said on phone.  

The Sternon Group has developed numerous property projects, including Malak Tower, a 54-storey building in Sharjah, and a 10-storey building, both in Dubai. It also has a residential resort on Sydney’s waterfront in Australia.  

Property investors in the UK, the United Arab Emirates and the US are now keen to tap rich Kenyans’ money with investments abroad, some of which make for good holiday destinations.  

Globalisation has made it much easier for investors to shop for prospective clients in any part of the world, and also for buyers to make purchases easily, including over the Internet.

For instance, payments for properties in developed markets like the US, UK, or Australia by overseas investors are sometimes made through escrow accounts, a financial instrument which a third party holds on behalf of the parties in a transaction. 

Last year, the Dubai-based real estate firm, Emaar Properties, which developed Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, came shopping for Kenyan investors to buy Sh22 million townhouses in Dubai.

The developer had earlier in the year invited Kenyans to buy one-bedroom houses at The Address Residence Sky View, which offers a panoramic view of the city.

A British property investor, Seer Acquisitions, was also in the country last year looking for Kenyans to buy Sh5.1 million self-contained student housing units in Birmingham.

Many of these global property developers are now reaching out to Kenyan real estate firms to partner in marketing their investments to Kenyans.

According to Ms Hassanali, HassConsult has been approached by about 10 global property developers over the last five years seeking to enlist it as their local agent.