ROLE OF NATIONAL GOVERNMENT HOUSING POLICY ON HOUSING AFFORDABILITY AMONG THE LOW INCOME EARNERS IN KENYA

Patrick Kibati

This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Kabarak University

CITATION: Kibati, P. (2016). Role Of National Government Housing Policy On Housing Affordability Among The Low Income Earners In Kenya. International Journal of Economics and Finance. 5, (1). 56-68.

ABSTRACT

Of the Kenya’s total population that lives in urban areas, a large proportion is confined in informal settlements. The country’s annual informal settlements growth rate is the highest in the world and it is likely to double in the next 30 years if positive intervention measures are not put in place. This study sought to evaluate the role of National Government housing policy on housing affordability among the low income earners in Kenya. The target population was 300.The sample size was 249.Stratified random sampling method was used. Primary data was used and questionnaires were used to collect the data. The questionnaires were pretested before launching the main study. Drop and pick method was used. The data collected was analyzed using inferential statistics and descriptive statistics using the IBM SPSS Statistics 20.0.1(March, 2012).The descriptive statistics that were used was the frequencies and mean. The inferential statistics involved the use of Pearson’s correlation and regression analysis. Results indicated that national government housing policy influenced housing affordability among low income earners in Kenya. The results indicated that the policies put in place by the National Government positively influenced housing affordability among low income earners in Kenya. This was evidenced by the overwhelming responses from the respondents who indicated that reviewing of the building code to allow for use of modern and appropriate technology, Zero rating VAT on building materials used to construct houses and establishment of a housing levy to enable the construction of low-income housing would lower the price of houses. It is recommended to the National Government to ensure that they put in place policies and procedures to be adhered to during supporting the incremental housing process. The National Government should facilitate the reviewing of the building code to allow for use of modern and appropriate technology as this would lower the price of houses.

Key Words: National Government, Housing Affordability, Low Income Earners

Full Text PDF Format