In January, 2025, the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics published the Kenya Housing Survey (KHS) 2023/24 . The survey provides a comprehensive analysis of housing conditions, affordability and tenure across the country.
The Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) worked in collaboration with the State Department for Housing and Urban Development, the State Department for Labour and Skills Development, the Kenya Space Agency, the Directorate of Resource Survey and Remote Sensing and the Central Bank of Kenya to produce the report.
The primary objective of the 2023/24 KHS was to provide up-to-date housing statistics to facilitate evidence-based planning and decision making in the housing sector. The survey revealed interesting patterns cutting across different areas of the housing sector in Kenya.
When it comes to the demand for rental housing across different towns in Kenya, there are several numbers in the survey that would help a prospective developer or real estate investor make informed decisions. Data was collected in all 47 counties of Kenya.
Rural vs Urban Households
There are four main categories of households; those living in their own homes, renters, squatters and those living in leased/rented properties without paying rent but with the owners’ permission.
61.3% of the Kenyan households surveyed for the Kenya Housing Report were homeowners while 33.4% paid rent in leased or rented properties. Rural areas had a higher percentage of homeowners with 85.5% of rural households owning the homes they live in. In urban centers only, 22.8% were homeowners while 72.3% of urban households were renters.
According to the Kenya Housing Survey, the total number of households living in urban centers across different towns in Kenya is 5,366,201. Only 22.8% of these urban dwellers own homes while 72.3% are renters.
Household Size
“Household size influences the demand for housing and the sizes of units. As houseshold size increases, the demand for larger space increases” KHS report , 2023/24.
The KHS report revealed a dynamic pattern when it comes to household size in Kenya. Tge number of members per household in Kenya varied from 1-2 persons to 11+ members per household. The most common household membership size was 1-2 persons (34.1%) followed by 3-4 persons (33.5%) per household.
Urban areas had a higher percentage of households with 1-2 persons (43.7%) and “3-4 persons” (35.9%) compared to rural areas with 28.0 per cent and 32.1 per cent, respectively.
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Two Bedroom, Most Popular Unit Size for Kenyan Tenants
Rural areas had larger household sizes of 5-6 persons and 7-8 persons on average. Central Kenya counties seem to have relatively smaller household sizes according to the KHS report. The proportion of households with 1-2 members was highest in Nyeri (55.4%), Laikipia (46.8%), and Kiambu (46.7%).
Elgeyo Marakwet (12.3%), Garissa (9.9%), and West Pokot (9.0%) had the highest proportion of household size with 9+ members per household.
When it comes to renters or households living in rental housing, 48.3% of them comprised of 1-2 persons while those with 3-4 persons accounted for (37.2%) of renters and lastly, 12.0% of renters had 5-6 persons per household.
Renters Vs Owners
Some counties had higher numbers of homeowners while others had higher numbers of renters. This data is crucial in determining where the demand for housing is highest. In Isiolo County for instance, 98% of the population own the homes the live in. Marsabit also has a relatively high number of homeowners at (97.5%), followed by Baringo County (96.9%). In urban areas home ownership was highest in Wajir at 87.0 per cent.
The proportion of squatters was highest in Mandera County (14.0%), Lamu (9.0%), and Garissa (6.2%). There us also a group of tenants who did not pay rent but with the consent of owners and Lamu had the highest number of these kinds of tenants with 19.3%, followed by Mandera (18.9%), and Nyandarua (12.0%).
88.8%
88.8% of households living in Nairobi are tenants. This makes Nairobi the most popular city for renters. Mombasa County comes in second with 71.8% of households in the coastal county renting.
Kenya Housing Survey 2023/24 by KNBS
Most Popular Towns for Kenyan Renters
As expected, the most urbanized towns had the highest proportions of renters, with Nairobi taking the lead . 88.8% of households in the capital of Kenya are renting, meaning the highest demand for rental properties is in Nairobi. Mombasa came in at number two with 71.8% of the households renting followed by Kajiado with 53.0% . Uasin Gishu (47.2%) and Kiambu (46.6%) had almost equal proportions of renters. Nakuru (44.3%), Laikipia (34.5%) and Kisumu (32.6%) also had significant numbers of renters.
In a separate part of the Kenya Housing Survey, tenants shared their preferences for towns they’d like to own homes in. Nairobi was in the lead with 17.1% of tenants showing preferences for homes units in this city. Kiambu was also relatively popular with 8.6% of renters preferring to live here in the future. Surprisingly, Nakuru was the third most popular property market with 6.6% of renters showing preference for the growing city. Machakos (5.1%) came in fourth followed by Mombasa (4.6%) and lastly Kajiado (4.0%).
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