I am in my late sixties, a retired mother and grandmother. I live in Kiambu County, where my late husband and I built a three-bedroom house. I have a chicken farm with 20 chickens and two dairy cows, which meet my daily expenses. I have three children, two daughters and one son, who are all in their 30s. I have five acres of land (two acres in Narok County, two acres in Nakuru County, quarter an acre in Githunguri Kiambu, and two 50*100 plots in Malaa and Joska areas).
I also have Sh6 million in the bank that was a lump-sum payment after retiring at the end of 2025. I want to set up an estate plan for my family, but I do not know how to go about it because my children have not been financially prudent. I have opened businesses for them that collapsed. My son is particularly worse. He still lives with me, and I am afraid that he would squander everything if I were to die.
My daughters are married but still come to me with financial problems, as their spouses are not financially well off. What is the best way to divide this land and money amongst them? How do I ensure they don’t squander the money? Is it a good idea to sell the land and invest the money in shares or something that will give them passive income every month? Please advise me on what to do. – Sarah
Dominic Karanja, a financial planning and investments consultant:
You have built a solid foundation for your family through arduous work, thoughtful asset accumulation, and careful management. It is understandable to feel concerned when your children struggle with money management, especially after previous business investments failed.
The first principle is to separate your lifetime security from your children's inheritance. In your late sixties, you should not risk your own financial stability in trying to help your children. To protect your long-term independence and well-being, retain a Life Interest in your Githunguri homestead and farm under Kenyan law, preserving your right to live on the land and earn income from dairy and poultry operations for the rest of your life before title passes to heirs. You should also set aside an emergency fund of about Sh500,000, equivalent to 6 to 12 months of farm and living expenses, in a liquid, high-yield Money Market Fund to cover healthcare, farm maintenance, and personal contingencies.
To protect the Sh6 million retirement lump sum from being squandered, avoid distributing raw cash or investing heavily in volatile stocks. Instead, place the capital in high-yield, lower-risk Kenyan income vehicles such as tax-free Infrastructure Bonds yielding around 12 per cent or Money Market Funds yielding 9 per cent to 12 per cent, which can preserve principal while generating dependable passive income.
Holding these investments in a registered Living Family Trust allows you to remain the primary trustee during your lifetime while adding post-death safeguards, including a professional co-trustee, spendthrift clauses, direct payment of school fees, and fixed monthly stipends for beneficiaries. For example, Sh5 million invested in a 15 per cent Infrastructure Bond could generate about Sh62,500 per month in tax-free distributions without reducing the underlying capital.
Rather than selling property and creating a vulnerable pool of cash, retain land assets that may appreciate over time in growth areas such as Malaa, Joska, Nakuru, and Narok. Under this strategy, the 0.25-acre Githunguri homestead should remain protected through a Trust or Will for equal residual ownership among your children, with a strict no-sale clause unless all agree. The prime 50×100 plots in Malaa and Joska can be allocated individually or selectively developed into rental units to create steady monthly income.
The larger two-acre parcels in Narok and Nakuru should remain trust assets and be leased for agricultural use, generating supplementary income while preserving the family's real estate base. I also recommend preparing a complete asset register now, listing each asset's approximate market value, title status, income potential, and intended beneficiary to make the estate plan clearer.
Do not feel obligated to distribute everything equally among the three children. Equality and fairness are not always the same. You may give each child equivalent economic value or intentionally structure different inheritances based on their circumstances. What matters is that your wishes are clearly documented, legally enforceable, and designed to minimise disputes.
My preferred approach would be to keep the Kiambu home for your lifetime, preserve enough cash and investments for retirement and medical needs, retain the best-performing agricultural land, sell only land with limited strategic or income value, invest part of any proceeds in diversified income-generating assets, create separate inheritance pools for each child, and place stronger controls around your son's inheritance rather than giving him a large lump sum.
To implement the estate plan effectively, engage an advocate experienced in Kenyan conveyancing and estate law to draft a formal Will or register a Family Trust, supported by an independent executor or corporate co-trustee. This structure can protect the estate from family pressure and ensure your terms are enforced.
It should include tailored safeguards that support beneficiaries while preventing asset dissipation, such as giving your son a right of residence and a trust-managed living allowance so he remains housed and food-secure without being able to sell or mortgage property. You can also set up educational trusts that pay school fees directly to your grandchildren's schools.
