Fanaka’s five years of dominance in Nairobi metropolis property market

Real estate property managers and land merchants, Fanaka Real Estate has marked five years of dominance in Kenya’s property market.

In areas along Eastern Bypass, Thika Road and Kangundo Road, Fanaka has been synonymous with value-added properties.

The firm has established itself as a market leader in strategic land within the Nairobi metropolis, an area that offers high-value growth to investors.

Fanaka’s growth journey dates back to July 2016 when the founder and Chief Executive Officer Moses Muriithi established a small office in Ruai town where he operated a real-estate agency.

“Using my savings from online jobs I bought an acre of land which I subdivided into plots and sold. I was mainly using a Facebook page for marketing,” said Mr Muriithi.

In September, he brought his first employee on board to handle office administrative work.

“In October, I sold the first plot and I set a goal to at least sell a plot every month,” he said.

In 2017, he employed a driver who also acted as a salesperson. And in April another employee, who also acted as a driver and a salesperson, joined the team.

“I focused on online marketing and developed a website for Fanaka. By then, we were on our third project and our focus areas included Joska, Malaa and Ruiru East,” he told Nation.Africa.

Business model

At this time, he also engaged a consultant to establish various business departments and the number of employees grew to 12. Fanaka also defined its business model through value-added habitable plots and flexible payments.

Since then, Fanaka has been doing one project per month, and in 2019 they added property management as a department within the organisation.

In 2020, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, Fanaka mainstreamed its internal operations to ensure that they become more efficient and reliable.

“Our clients can access their title deeds within 30 days after full payment,” noted the CEO. The firm also leveraged online and social media marketing and grew the number of employees to 30.

In mid-2020, the company replicated its successful business model in areas within Kangundo Road in a new strategic location and that is how they penetrated Thika Road by the end of the year.

Ultra-modern office

In January 2021, it opened their ultra-modern office at NorthPark Towers at Kamakis, off Eastern Bypass and embarked on their first project in Ruiru along Thika Road. There has been a huge appetite for residential property within Ruiru.

“This demand has been sustained as we have sold out over 10 projects in this area within the past one year,” said Mr Muriithi.

By the end of 2021, the firm had spread wings to Juja Farm and continued to expand to other areas along Thika Road.

Over the last three years, Fanaka has cut a niche in property management along Kangundo Road and Nairobi’s Eastlands. The firm is managing over 50 residential and commercial units within Utawala, Ruiru, Kiambu, Kangundo Road and seeks to expand its reach to other areas within Nairobi.

The firm makes use of a digital Property Management System (PMS) that has improved efficiencies for both landlords and tenants. The firm is setting up a construction arm so that they can give their clients an end-to-end service.

 “We have the capacity to assist our clients to own their dream homes,” Mr Muriithi said.

 Fanaka Foundation

In 2021, the company implemented three CSR projects. They include visits to: Wings of Hope Rescue Center at Kamulu, Huruma Kids Center at Huruma and Dreams Children’s Home at Ngong. Fanaka was also a Sponsorship Partner with Affecto Watoto Wasome Programme, and has in previous years visited Fadhili Children’s Home in Joska.

To further their CSR mandate, Fanaka is in the process of introducing the Fanaka Foundation and defining its key focus in spearheading sustainable development in the areas where they operate.

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