Questions we are asked before a build
Most people building in Kenya do it once. These are the questions worth having answered before you appoint anyone. See also what it costs, why you want a BQ and how to check NCA registration.
- What does it cost to build a house in Kenya?
- Roughly KES 45,000 per m² for a basic bungalow to about KES 120,000 per m² for a well-finished maisonette, with most family homes at KES 55,000–70,000 per m². A 120 m² three-bedroom bungalow at mid finish is typically KES 7.2M–8.4M. Full detail is on the cost page.
- How long does a house take to build?
- For a straightforward bungalow, budget nine to twelve months from approved drawings to handover, and add the approval period before that. Approvals are the part most often underestimated: county approval and NEMA where required should run in parallel with design, not after it.
- Why do I need a bill of quantities?
- Because without one you are comparing builders on a headline number that hides exclusions, agreeing payments against nothing measurable, and accepting variations you cannot check. It is the cheapest protection available on a build.
- How do you take payment?
- Staged payments tied to completed, measured milestones (substructure, ring beam, roof, plaster, handover) by M-Pesa with a receipt at each stage or by bank transfer. We do not ask for a large deposit before materials are on site.
- What happens when something changes mid-build?
- It becomes a written variation order: measured, priced and approved by you before the work happens. Most Kenyan overruns are not one dramatic surprise, they are twenty small unpriced changes, and this is how that is prevented.
- Are you NCA registered?
- Yes, and you get the registration number, the category and the name of our technical director in writing with the tender documents. Ask any contractor for the number and the category rather than the phrase, then verify it against the NCA register rather than a certificate on a wall.
- Do you handle county approval and NEMA?
- Yes, and we quote them as separate visible lines rather than folding them into a rate. NEMA applies above a certain project scale and runs in parallel with structural design. Estate covenants in Karen, Runda and Gigiri are reviewed before the county sees anything.
- What warranty do I get?
- A defects liability period stated in months on your contract, during which we return and fix what emerges. Materials carry their manufacturer warranties, and we itemise what was used so a claim is straightforward.
- Is a bungalow really cheaper than a maisonette?
- Per square metre, by roughly 20–35%. No suspended slab between floors, no staircase consuming floor area on two levels, lighter foundations, simpler services. On a plot where land is not the constraint, that is the biggest single lever you have.
- Do I need a soil investigation?
- On most Nairobi plots, yes, and it is inexpensive relative to what it prevents. Black cotton across much of Lavington needs deeper foundations; Lang'ata has shallow rock; the Two Rivers end has a high water table. Each changes the substructure materially.
- Will you project manage a build somebody else is constructing?
- Yes. We act as QS and project manager against another contractor where clients want that separation, and on larger projects we would rather you appointed an independent QS than have us both build and value the work.
- Where do you build?
- Across Nairobi (Karen, Runda, Muthaiga, Gigiri, Kitisuru, Lavington, Kilimani, Kileleshwa, Westlands, Parklands, Lang'ata and the Kiambu Road corridor) and elsewhere in Kenya for larger projects.
Thinking about building?
Send us the plot size, the rough brief and where it is. We will come back with a realistic cost range before anyone visits, and we will tell you if the budget and the brief do not meet.
Fixed-price written quotation · staged payments against milestones · no deposit before materials are on site