The escalated crackdown on land rates defaulters by Nairobi county government has exposed how property owners have denied the city billions of shillings required for service delivery.
Several landowners appear to have taken advantage of weak systems in enforcing compliance to default paying their rates, with data by the administration by Governor Johnson Sakaja showing that out of the 256,000 registered landowners, only 50,000 – representing 20 per cent – have been paying their land rates. In total, the county is owed Sh50 billion in land rates debt.
Last week alone, the county clamped down on several high end properties, which have failed to pay their rates for years, accruing individual debts running into millions of shillings.
Nairobi County Council team at the Freemasons Hall along Processional Way, Nairobi on May 14, 2025.
Photo credit: Wilfred Nyangaresi | Nation Media Group
Grand Lodge of East Africa’s Freemasons’ Hall is among properties that have defaulted and have since accrued Sh19 million.
In the Riverside area, county enforcement officers clamped Plot Riverside Ten, which has an outstanding debt of Sh8.8 million. Also targeted in the area is Millennium Villas. F. Mugaro was also served with a notice over unpaid land rates exceeding Sh14 million, according to Nairobi county.
Others targeted for defaulting are Uganda House along Kenyatta Avenue and Chester House along Koinange, which were clamped on the first day of the exercise. Land rates make up to 25 per cent of Nairobi's annual revenue.
The county administration has since called on all landowners previously exempted from paying land rates to re-apply for exemptions, following the implementation of the National Rating Act No. 15 of 2024.
Uganda House along Kenyatta Avenue, Nairobi, pictured on May 13, 2025.
Photo credit: Lucy Wanjiru | Nation Media Group
“The Act shields certain properties from rating. Under Section 38, public lands such as health facilities, public schools, cemeteries, and places of worship — excluding income-generating portions — are exempt,” said County Attorney Christine Ireri.
She said all other landowners, including those whose properties were previously exempted, are now required to re-apply under the updated legal framework.
“We are clamping revenue-generating premises — not public schools or hospitals. We respect exemptions but cannot tolerate commercial entities hiding behind religious or public-use claims,” she said.
The County’s Receiver of Revenue, Tiras Njoroge not that other exempted categories under the law include dams, wayleaves, museums and national monuments, and public outdoor sports grounds.
Mr Njoroge explained that the ongoing operation is strictly targeting revenue-generating premises that have failed to comply.
The administration said the new act is intended to streamline land revenue collection, eliminate abuse of exemptions, and boost funding for essential public services in the county.
“The crackdown is ongoing. We’ll adopt a multi-agency strategy, deploying several squads to intensify the operation. Everyone must pay what is due so we can deliver services more effectively,” said Mr Njoroge.
The crackdown on land rates defaulters is running concurrently with eviction of county tenants who have failed to pay their rents for years.
Documents tabled before the Senate Roads and Housing committee showed that some tenants have not paid rent for 13 years despite repeated notices and eviction warnings.
With Woodley Estate being the worst affected, the document showed that some 13 tenants owe the county over Sh1 million each, with non-payment periods ranging between 65 and 158 months. Monthly rents for these tenants range from Sh11,000 to Sh17,600.
For instance, a tenant of the estate has not paid his rent for 158 months, equivalent to 13 years. The tenant, who pays a monthly rent of Sh17,600, now owes the county Sh1.8 million in unpaid rent.
In another case, a tenant who pays Sh11,000 a month, has not paid rent for 102 months, or eight and a half years, translating to arrears of Sh1.74 million. In total, 118 tenants in the estate owe City Hall a staggering Sh39.63 million in unpaid rent.
