Tanzania’s property market must look beyond unit numbers, says Zara Real Estate CEO
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As new residential and commercial developments reshape Dar es Salaam’s skyline, Zara Real Estate chief executive Hellen Kiwia argues the market should be judged on the quality and long-term value of what is built, not just volume.
Tanzania’s real estate market is changing quickly, with new residential and commercial developments across Dar es Salaam and other growing urban centres giving buyers and investors more choice than ever before — but the conversation needs to mature, writes Hellen Kiwia, chief executive of Zara Real Estate Limited.
“The question should no longer simply be: how much are we building? We should also be asking: what are we building, who are we building it for, and will it still represent good value ten or twenty years from now?” she writes. More supply on its own does not necessarily create a strong property market, she argues; quality matters just as much.
Kiwia says a good development begins long before construction starts, with location, architecture, unit sizes, practical layouts, natural light and ventilation, materials, parking, security, amenities and how the property will eventually be managed all affecting long-term value. Buyers are becoming better informed and more selective, and for an investor the lowest price per square metre is not always the best deal. “Price and value are not the same thing,” she writes.
She argues that one of the biggest opportunities in Tanzania is for developers to become more closely connected to the people who will eventually live in, rent or buy their properties, asking what unit sizes people are looking for, which layouts work for today’s households and which amenities residents really use. Real estate professionals who deal directly with buyers, tenants and investors, she says, can help developers make better decisions about the product itself, as well as pricing, positioning and sales strategy.
Dar es Salaam is seeing increasingly sophisticated residential developments, while infrastructure investment, tourism, business activity and continued urbanisation are creating opportunities across the property market. “Adding more units will not be enough,” Kiwia concludes. “The developments that stand out over the long term will be those that understand who they are building for and deliver well — from the initial concept and construction quality through to handover, maintenance and management.”