Residential Projects

Developer Refunds Buyers of Sh7bn Samara Estate

The project stalled due to a court challenge by neighbouring residents.

Updated on

November 20, 2023

A wallet holding several debit cards. PHOTO | FILE

Sycamore Pine Ltd. has refunded five buyers of units in its Sh7 billion Samara Estate in Kiambu County, which stalled following a court challenge by neighbouring residents.

This follows the intervention of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance and National Planning, which last month received complaints from buyers who alleged they were deceived into investing in a non-existent project.

One of the complainants, Maryanne Njoki, a Kenyan who works in Saudi Arabia, says she made a payment of Sh1,598,000 to buy a two-bedroom unit under the affordable housing project within Migaa Golf Estate in Kiambu, but the project did not take off as promised.

On November 2, the Committee met with officials of Safaricom Investment Co-operative, which had been contracted by Sycamore Pine to sell the property off-plan at a commission of 4.5% of the sale price, in an attempt to ascertain the truth.

It was revealed that, according to the agreement, a buyer would sign purchase agreements with Sycamore Pine Limited and directly deposit funds in the developer’s account.

Eight Kenyans paid between Sh790,000 and Sh1,598,000 as deposit for purchase of units in the 18.98-acre estate, which comprises 1,200 two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments.

In 2020, a Chinese firm signed a deal with Sycamore to build the estate within 36 months. They priced 2- and 3-bedroom units at Sh2.95 million and Sh3.95 million, respectively.

However, the project stalled after residents of the neighbouring Migaa Golf Estate challenged in court the construction of high-rise apartments in their neighbourhood.

The court ordered the stoppage of construction on the estate pending a hearing and determination of the objection. Safaricom Investment Cooperative terminated its agency agreement with Sycamore Pine following the court order.

“Safaricom Investment Cooperative claimed that on September 9, 2021, it wrote to Sycamore Pine Limited demanding a refund of monies paid by the seven purchasers,” Kuria Kimani, chair of the Committee on Finance and National Planning told Parliament on November 8.

“However, since 2021, neither Safaricom Investment Cooperative nor Sycamore Limited had refunded the monies to their respective house owners who had made a transfer to the developer as at 15th October 2023.”

Mr Kuria, however, told the house that between October 18 and 25, refunds were made to the respective Kenyans “after the Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning took up the matter”.

The case is in court, with the main petition set for hearing on November 22.

The Migaa Residents Association have accused the estate’s developers Home Afrika Limited, and Sycamore Pine Limited of deliberately keeping them in the dark about the Samara Estate, which is scheduled to be built within the gated community.

A property owner who spoke with CK earlier lamented that the low-cost housing project was likely to subject the exclusive neighbourhood to traffic congestion, property devaluation, and the loss of green space.

“I have spent a fortune to build my dream home. I feel the direction they (developers) are taking toward low-cost housing is going to devalue my property,” he said.

Migaa plots were selling for Sh5.5 million per eighth of acre, with villas going for at least Sh8.5 million. The gated community is marketed as ‘serene, high-end housing estate’.