You earn a decent living, probably in a solid relationship and what is left is to get a house you can call your own.

A home is usually the single largest investment that a person makes. And so the debate is, what is better — an established house or building from scratch?

Valens Mugabo says it is important to consult extensively before taking a decision.

“Sometimes people rush into decisions but it is always wise to talk to other people, especially those who have been there before,” he says.

Officials in the City of Kigali have invited city residents to use the time after doing community work (Umuganda) today and share their ideas about what should be considered in the city’s new construction Master Plan.

The officials want residents to play a central role in the ongoing process of updating the city Master Plan in order to ensure the city growth in the future takes care of residents’ needs.

Real estate sector is a key sector and a potential driver of future economic growth. There is a high demand for both residential and commercial buildings. The annual demand for residential houses is increasing at a rate of 25,000 per year. Investment in the sector has grown from US$ 100 million to US$ 480million in the last 13 year and this is driven by population growth, an emerging and growing middle class, increased Diaspora investment in Rwandan property markets and the government investment in infrastructure expansion and modernization of urban and rural infrastructure

Green building is gaining rapid momentum in Africa with office buildings in Rwanda and Namibia both receiving 6-Star Green Star ratings.

In Kigali, Rwanda, the Nobelia Office Tower has achieved the very first Green Star rating in the country – a 6-Star Green Star SA-Rwanda - Office v1 Design rating for shell and core.

While in Windhoek, Namibia, Emcon Consulting Group’s offices received a 6-Star Green Star SA-Namibia - Existing Building Performance Tool v1 rating, becoming the second Green Star certified building in the country, and the first to attain a 6-Star rating.

The Development Bank of Rwanda (BRD) and partners are working hard to launch the construction of Ndera – Gasabo housing units where low and middle-income earners have started applying for a house.

The bank, in partnership with Bank of Africa are preparing all requirements to  kick start construction of 1750 housing units in Ndera sector, Gasabo district by September this year.

Paul Kamanzi, 41, has lived in Kigali since early 1995. Having been born in Uganda where his parents fled to escape political persecution during pre-liberation Rwanda, he was among the early returnees who took advantage of the country’s liberation in July 1994 from the genocidal regime to return to their home country to rebuild their lives.

On April 26, 2018, the Institute of Policy Analysis and Research (IPAR)-Rwanda in collaboration with the Partnership for African Social and Governance Research (PASGR) based in Nairobi, Kenya, organised the second Utafiti Sera (Research-Policy) Stakeholders’ Forum on Urban Governance and City Transformation in Rwanda, bringing together over 50 participants to discuss affordable housing in Kigali at the Marasa Umubano Hotel.

The social mix or integration of affordable houses and services is a critical principle for new urban planning in order to ensure sustainability, an official has said.

Vincent Kitio, chief of the urban energy unit at the UN agency for human settlements and sustainable urban development, was yesterday presenting strategies to integrate sustainable city planning into a roadmap of a sustainable energy future for East Africa on the final day of the first Sustainable Energy Forum for East Africa 2018, in Kigali.

Rwanda-based Real estate developers, DND Developers Ltd, has revealed that plans to bring affordable housing solutions to the Rwanda Market are in progress

Speaking with IGIHE, DND Developers Managing Director, Eng. Daniel Mehari, said that the company was trying to respond to the needs of the time, as currently, small and less expensive houses were very sought-after.

"We are currently going through plans for the third phase of our project which is a set of cheaper, and more affordable units than the ones that we are currently selling to the public,” says Eng. Mehari.

10,000 affordable houses are set to be constructed in Rwanda; this is after the Rwanda Development Board (RDB) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Mitrelli Group, an Israeli conglomerate that specializes in large-scale long-term projects.

Haim Taib, Founder and President of Mitrelli Group who signed the MOU confirmed the reports and lauded RDB for the government’s readiness to cooperate and partner with them.

Kigali should be an engine of growth and poverty reduction for Rwanda. But just 1,000 formal houses are built there each year, and most are too expensive for the majority low-income citizens. How can the government breathe life into the city’s low income housing market? Robert Buckley and Sally Murray discuss._