NAIROBI, Kenya – After years of rapid growth fueled by infrastructure upgrades like the Thika Super Highway and Nairobi Expressway, land prices in Nairobi’s satellite towns are finally hitting the brakes.
According to the Hass Land 2024 Fourth Quarter Price Index, released Wednesday, prices in 9 of the 14 tracked towns recorded their slowest growth since mid-2023.
Slow Growth In Land Prices: Land prices in Nairobi’s surrounding towns grew 1.9% in the last quarter of 2024, marking the slowest pace of appreciation in 18 months. #NTVTonight @theninashaban
The report reveals a modest 1.9pc rise in satellite town land prices this quarter, compared to a 3.02pc jump in the previous period.
This marks the slowest growth since the 1.22pc recorded six quarters ago, signaling the waning impact of infrastructure-led booms and the strain of a tough economic climate.
Key satellite towns like Thika and Mlolongo, which previously saw robust price surges, are now cooling significantly.
Growth in Thika plunged from 6.3pc in Q3 to a mere 0.9pc in Q4, while Mlolongo dropped from 6.6pc to 1.1pc. The trend was mirrored in Kiambu (-0.3pc) and Ngong (-0.2pc), which both recorded negative growth.
Even towns with relatively stable demand, such as Ruiru, Syokimau, and Kiserian, saw their price growth decelerate.
An acre of land in Kiambu now averages Sh49.6 million, while Ruiru and Ngong come in at Sh35.6 million and Sh35.9 million, respectively.
Ruaka, despite a slowdown, remains the most expensive satellite town, with land prices averaging a hefty Sh111.2 million per acre.
Sakina Hassanali, Head of Development Consulting and Research at HassConsult, attributed the slowdown to economic uncertainty, rising interest rates, and job losses.
“Periods of economic strain often cause developers to delay land acquisitions, which reduces demand and tempers price hikes,” Hassanali explained.
While satellite towns saw a marked deceleration, Nairobi’s suburbs maintained a steady rise in land prices, up by 1.7pc in Q4 from 1.6pc in Q3.
Upper Hill led the pack with a staggering Sh522.7 million per acre, followed by Westlands (Sh487.3 million) and Parklands (Sh448.7 million).
Quarterly gains were strongest in areas like Parklands (3.4pc), Upper Hill (3.3pc), Spring Valley (3.1pc), and Kileleshwa (3.0pc), suggesting that these areas remain hotspots for investors.
Meanwhile, property sales prices also showed modest improvement, climbing 0.8pc in Q4 compared to 0.7pc in Q3.
On an annual basis, property sales prices grew by 5.2pc in 2024, more than double the 2.5pc growth recorded in 2023. Detached houses outperformed other segments, with a quarterly rise of 1.5pc and a yearly growth rate of 7.5pc.
As Nairobi’s land market recalibrates, the effects of a strained economy are increasingly evident.
Infrastructure projects, once the key driver of land price surges, are no longer the magic bullet they once were. For satellite towns, slower growth highlights the need for sustainable economic policies to keep the real estate sector vibrant.
