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Rental houses- one of the worst investments
heri
#1 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 5:27:15 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 9/14/2011
Posts: 869
Location: nairobi
i have concluded that building houses for rent is one of the worst investments other than for those people who do money laundering

i know this may have been discsused under mortgage topic but would appreciate anyone who can share their experience

With Ksh 15M one can build 8 houses of 2 bedrooms each giving a rent of about sh 22k hence kshs 176K per month assuming 100% occupancy

after monthly agents costs, security, garbage, etc you can end up with net rent of Kshs between 140-150K

However, factoring in financing costs. assuming the kshs 15M was borrowed at 12% for a period of 15 years , the total mortgage repayment is Kshs 181K. Monthly interest alone is kshs 97K

Theoretically therefore one would have to pay about kshs 40K each month from the pocket


The returns are very low and to me i fail to understand how rental houses can ever be considered to be a business!

the actual return on the investment is about 3% per year ignoring the houses value appreciatiation
murchr
#2 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 5:31:17 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 2/26/2012
Posts: 15,980
heri wrote:
i have concluded that building houses for rent is one of the worst investments other than for those people who do money laundering

i know this may have been discsused under mortgage topic but would appreciate anyone who can share their experience

With Ksh 15M one can build 8 houses of 2 bedrooms each giving a rent of about sh 22k hence kshs 176K per month assuming 100% occupancy

after monthly agents costs, security, garbage, etc you can end up with net rent of Kshs between 140-150K

However, factoring in financing costs. assuming the kshs 15M was borrowed at 12% for a period of 15 years , the total mortgage repayment is Kshs 181K. Monthly interest alone is kshs 97K

Theoretically therefore one would have to pay about kshs 40K each month from the pocket


The returns are very low and to me i fail to understand how rental houses can ever be considered to be a business!


What if you are a civil servant and your mortgage is at 5% for 20 years?
"There are only two emotions in the market, hope & fear. The problem is you hope when you should fear & fear when you should hope: - Jesse Livermore
.
heri
#3 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 5:42:26 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 9/14/2011
Posts: 869
Location: nairobi
murchr wrote:
heri wrote:
i have concluded that building houses for rent is one of the worst investments other than for those people who do money laundering

i know this may have been discsused under mortgage topic but would appreciate anyone who can share their experience

With Ksh 15M one can build 8 houses of 2 bedrooms each giving a rent of about sh 22k hence kshs 176K per month assuming 100% occupancy

after monthly agents costs, security, garbage, etc you can end up with net rent of Kshs between 140-150K

However, factoring in financing costs. assuming the kshs 15M was borrowed at 12% for a period of 15 years , the total mortgage repayment is Kshs 181K. Monthly interest alone is kshs 97K

Theoretically therefore one would have to pay about kshs 40K each month from the pocket


The returns are very low and to me i fail to understand how rental houses can ever be considered to be a business!


What if you are a civil servant and your mortgage is at 5% for 20 years?


@murchr yes that would change the equation quite a bit since monthly repayment at 5% over 15 years would be Kshs 120K but still don't you think it is a very bad investment decision especially for those who cannot get the mortgage at those 5% rates. I presume the majority of the rental property owners borrow at anything from 12%

mind you i have not even factored any taxes on the net rent
murchr
#4 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 6:00:37 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 2/26/2012
Posts: 15,980
heri wrote:
murchr wrote:
heri wrote:
i have concluded that building houses for rent is one of the worst investments other than for those people who do money laundering

i know this may have been discsused under mortgage topic but would appreciate anyone who can share their experience

With Ksh 15M one can build 8 houses of 2 bedrooms each giving a rent of about sh 22k hence kshs 176K per month assuming 100% occupancy

after monthly agents costs, security, garbage, etc you can end up with net rent of Kshs between 140-150K

However, factoring in financing costs. assuming the kshs 15M was borrowed at 12% for a period of 15 years , the total mortgage repayment is Kshs 181K. Monthly interest alone is kshs 97K

Theoretically therefore one would have to pay about kshs 40K each month from the pocket


The returns are very low and to me i fail to understand how rental houses can ever be considered to be a business!


What if you are a civil servant and your mortgage is at 5% for 20 years?


@murchr yes that would change the equation quite a bit since monthly repayment at 5% over 15 years would be Kshs 120K but still don't you think it is a very bad investment decision especially for those who cannot get the mortgage at those 5% rates. I presume the majority of the rental property owners borrow at anything from 12%

mind you i have not even factored any taxes on the net rent


It all boils down on the interest on borrowed money. Those who can get better rates (bankers, public servants, etc) can hack it...for those who can only qualify for a mortgage of 12+% they need to sell the houses to make money.

The wazua landlord @Kaigangio can teach us on how to handle the taxman
"There are only two emotions in the market, hope & fear. The problem is you hope when you should fear & fear when you should hope: - Jesse Livermore
.
heri
#5 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 6:57:20 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 9/14/2011
Posts: 869
Location: nairobi
murchr wrote:
heri wrote:
murchr wrote:
heri wrote:
i have concluded that building houses for rent is one of the worst investments other than for those people who do money laundering

i know this may have been discsused under mortgage topic but would appreciate anyone who can share their experience

With Ksh 15M one can build 8 houses of 2 bedrooms each giving a rent of about sh 22k hence kshs 176K per month assuming 100% occupancy

after monthly agents costs, security, garbage, etc you can end up with net rent of Kshs between 140-150K

However, factoring in financing costs. assuming the kshs 15M was borrowed at 12% for a period of 15 years , the total mortgage repayment is Kshs 181K. Monthly interest alone is kshs 97K

Theoretically therefore one would have to pay about kshs 40K each month from the pocket


The returns are very low and to me i fail to understand how rental houses can ever be considered to be a business!


What if you are a civil servant and your mortgage is at 5% for 20 years?


@murchr yes that would change the equation quite a bit since monthly repayment at 5% over 15 years would be Kshs 120K but still don't you think it is a very bad investment decision especially for those who cannot get the mortgage at those 5% rates. I presume the majority of the rental property owners borrow at anything from 12%

mind you i have not even factored any taxes on the net rent


It all boils down on the interest on borrowed money. Those who can get better rates (bankers, public servants, etc) can hack it...for those who can only qualify for a mortgage of 12+% they need to sell the houses to make money.

The wazua landlord @Kaigangio can teach us on how to handle the taxman


Do bankers , civil servants get mortgages at 5% to build/buy one house or they can get mortgage at 5% to build a block of flats?
murchr
#6 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 7:02:22 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 2/26/2012
Posts: 15,980
heri wrote:
murchr wrote:
heri wrote:
murchr wrote:
heri wrote:
i have concluded that building houses for rent is one of the worst investments other than for those people who do money laundering

i know this may have been discsused under mortgage topic but would appreciate anyone who can share their experience

With Ksh 15M one can build 8 houses of 2 bedrooms each giving a rent of about sh 22k hence kshs 176K per month assuming 100% occupancy

after monthly agents costs, security, garbage, etc you can end up with net rent of Kshs between 140-150K

However, factoring in financing costs. assuming the kshs 15M was borrowed at 12% for a period of 15 years , the total mortgage repayment is Kshs 181K. Monthly interest alone is kshs 97K

Theoretically therefore one would have to pay about kshs 40K each month from the pocket


The returns are very low and to me i fail to understand how rental houses can ever be considered to be a business!


What if you are a civil servant and your mortgage is at 5% for 20 years?


@murchr yes that would change the equation quite a bit since monthly repayment at 5% over 15 years would be Kshs 120K but still don't you think it is a very bad investment decision especially for those who cannot get the mortgage at those 5% rates. I presume the majority of the rental property owners borrow at anything from 12%

mind you i have not even factored any taxes on the net rent


It all boils down on the interest on borrowed money. Those who can get better rates (bankers, public servants, etc) can hack it...for those who can only qualify for a mortgage of 12+% they need to sell the houses to make money.

The wazua landlord @Kaigangio can teach us on how to handle the taxman


Do bankers , civil servants get mortgages at 5% to build/buy one house or they can get mortgage at 5% to build a block of flats?


Their choice. As long as they pay the money back
"There are only two emotions in the market, hope & fear. The problem is you hope when you should fear & fear when you should hope: - Jesse Livermore
.
Lolest!
#7 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 7:17:18 PM
Rank: Elder

Joined: 3/18/2011
Posts: 12,069
Location: Kianjokoma
Rentals(esp residential) offer very low returns. Good thing is, you will 'eat' from them for long.

Did you factor in rent escalation after 2 years?
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heri
#8 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 7:50:24 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 9/14/2011
Posts: 869
Location: nairobi
Lolest! wrote:
Rentals(esp residential) offer very low returns. Good thing is, you will 'eat' from them for long.

Did you factor in rent escalation after 2 years?


For residential houses, the rental increments may not be that big. For a house in my case going for Kshs 22K maybe in 2 years the rent could be say Kshs 24K ( about 9% growth)

But considering that am starting off with a return of merely about 3% per year from the rents earned, the growth in rent over time would still not make the business attractive

But as said above the financing cost is the main problem
greenbeat
#9 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 7:56:53 PM
Rank: New-farer

Joined: 4/15/2013
Posts: 15
I guess rentals like the ones @heri mentioned are for a specific category of investors:
- Those with access to very low cost loans
- Those with huge amounts of idle cash looking to park it in real estate.
-Those without the need for current cash flow but considering future (read retirement) cash flow after completion of the mortgage.

In my opinion, for one starting off, businesses which generate ready cash flow are the way to go, then once the capital piles up, one can invest in rentals for a secure and steady future income.
Thitifini
#10 Posted : Tuesday, April 14, 2015 9:10:19 PM
Rank: Member

Joined: 1/15/2015
Posts: 681
Location: Kenya
murchr wrote:
heri wrote:
murchr wrote:
heri wrote:
murchr wrote:
heri wrote:
i have concluded that building houses for rent is one of the worst investments other than for those people who do money laundering

i know this may have been discsused under mortgage topic but would appreciate anyone who can share their experience

With Ksh 15M one can build 8 houses of 2 bedrooms each giving a rent of about sh 22k hence kshs 176K per month assuming 100% occupancy

after monthly agents costs, security, garbage, etc you can end up with net rent of Kshs between 140-150K

However, factoring in financing costs. assuming the kshs 15M was borrowed at 12% for a period of 15 years , the total mortgage repayment is Kshs 181K. Monthly interest alone is kshs 97K

Theoretically therefore one would have to pay about kshs 40K each month from the pocket


The returns are very low and to me i fail to understand how rental houses can ever be considered to be a business!


What if you are a civil servant and your mortgage is at 5% for 20 years?


@murchr yes that would change the equation quite a bit since monthly repayment at 5% over 15 years would be Kshs 120K but still don't you think it is a very bad investment decision especially for those who cannot get the mortgage at those 5% rates. I presume the majority of the rental property owners borrow at anything from 12%

mind you i have not even factored any taxes on the net rent


It all boils down on the interest on borrowed money. Those who can get better rates (bankers, public servants, etc) can hack it...for those who can only qualify for a mortgage of 12+% they need to sell the houses to make money.

The wazua landlord @Kaigangio can teach us on how to handle the taxman


Do bankers , civil servants get mortgages at 5% to build/buy one house or they can get mortgage at 5% to build a block of flats?


Their choice. As long as they pay the money back


For civil servants , plans must be for only single residency only. No flats. Talk of follow up from treasury or whoever on 'lonees'. Others sijaangalia.

60% Learning, 30% synthesizing, 10% Debating
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