Members of Harambee Savings and Credit Cooperative Society are set to benefit from Ksh 8 million housing loan on a back of funds from the Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company (KMRC).
Harambee Investment Cooperative Society Chief Executive Officer Gichuki Kabukuru said the loans which were capped at Ksh 4 million will attract 9pc interest and a repayment period of up to 25-years.
This is expected to increase the uptake of mortgage loans and bridge the housing deficit.
“The amount of mortgages available to members of the Sacco was enabled after KMRC doubled the loan mortgage size from Ksh 4 million to Ksh 8 million for the metropolitan counties of Nairobi, Kiambu, Machakos and Kajiado and to Ksh 6 million for the rest in relation to increasing cost of living and construction materials,” said Kabukuru .
Kabukuru said each mortgage is pegged at member’s age until retirement at 60 years or 25 years’ repayment period where Jenga loans are based on a drawdown basis based on stage-by-stage arrangement during construction.
“This means individuals who qualify for the subsidized loans or those earning less than Ksh 150,000, have to top up their loans with commercial credit should they seek a home above Ksh 8 million,” he added.
The sacco has two mortgage product, Harambee Home Loan which enables its members purchase readily build houses and Harambee Jenga Loan where borrowers are facilitated to build a house on their own parcels of land.
According to Harambee Sacco this is a win for its members since the average Mortgage rate at the Central Bank of Kenya stands at 13pc.
