Back to school

Often you find yourself faced with two extreme choices in Kenya; an extremely expensive one and an extremely cheap one, with nothing in-between. I consider it a result of the structure of society; a large lower class and a small upper class with not a lot in the middle. Though in recent years the middle class, comprising well educated and ambitious young professionals, has finally both emerged and grown quickly.

When looking for a place to stay, I struggled with exactly this problem.

After an extensive search, my options came down to either fleapit hotels costing a few euros per day, or apartments or cottages starting at 500 euros per month and going well into the four figures. Unsurprisingly, neither really appealed. But thankfully, family connections prevailed again. My step mother managed to find a reasonably price wooden hut in the compound where she lives - inside a boarding school!

Home for the next couple of months

Haven't... had.. time.. to... furnish!

So that is home sweet home - kids running around all the time, but safe. Looking at the school, it's possible that the kids learning here will contribute to the next generation of middle-classers.

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On the subject of housing and classes, it is fascinating to see how Kenya is changing. My memories from childhood were of people living predominantly iron shacks; more often than not looking worse for wear. As a child I really struggled with seeing such clear signs of poverty; apparently the first time I came to Kenya, I asked my mother why the government didn't build council houses like in the UK. Her reply was that the government didn't have money to do it. Hey, I was only eight at the time...

However, things have changed, and nowadays there are nice looking tower blocks springing up everywhere. It's a sign of a growing middle class and the closing of the gap between rich and poor.

Blocks like this one (in which a cousin is involved in constructing) are springing up everywhere

Simple and effective design. One living room and hall (pictured), two bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom. Home for a small middle class family!

Demand is high; works are still ongoing but 80% of units have been taken.

Last Thursday I was lucky enough to be inside such a development. One of my cousins is involved in the development of a compound containing 40 flats spread across four blocks. It's a kind of group-funded project with around 1,000 investors involved. Some investors are buying one of the flats themselves, others are just investing in a flat (or part thereof) and looking to make a bit from the sale.

The flats themselves are nicely designed, and over 80% have already been sold (even though they are not yet finished). It appears therefore that such flats are in high demand. But with an increasing number of such developments, part of me wonders if Kenya is eventually heading for a property bubble, at least at the emerging middle class level.