also if possibe, please mention any real estate company you dealt with that was professional and trustworthy...

@ EKMUGO mentor group and Villacare are controlled by one individual but are sister companies, i propose you conduct due dilligence on both companies otherwise Villa care are my letting agents and i have no complaints otherwise due diligence

Villa Care is professionaly run, i believe.They hire trained graduates from Uon n poly. Check a real estate firm with other services lyk valuation n site acquisition.Also chek whether they're registered estate agents and are ISK members

passed by Villacare (as an employee) in 2006..

in brief... every firm has its problems and villacare has its fair share..

hence i would advise that you do not make a payment through them or a lawyer but directly to the developer's escrow account.. infact this rule should always apply to whichever other property marketing firm you deal with...

concept homes.. true are the way to go... however factor a handsome time allowance for time over runs.. some projects are currently in triple overtime... while other projects started at the same time are long over... again that rule does not apply to villacare only..

may be you could post the set of other people working on the job for further reviews

@fantony, you brought out the issues well. Honestly don't think they'd have grown much if they were completely crooks.

@Djinn, I agree as when dealing with all brokers - caution. But personally don't have a problem with point 1. In point 2, they would be culpable only if they were the developers.

@Djinn, now I understand you better. Considering you are a writer, your revulsion is justified.

But in the age of the web, very often we take without referencing from someone else's writing or speech. It's bad manners at best but may not directly reflect their property management abilities. Note there's an author credited.

Anyway, as regards people, I always believe - Trust but verify.


PS. On a personal note I stand accused - always try to indicate references in quotes; but came across Oscar Wilde which got me thinking...
“Most people are other people. Their thoughts are someone else's opinions, their lives a mimicry, their passions a quotation.”

The Villacare family is extensive anchored on Mr. Daniel Ojijo.

These are some of the companies more active companies in the family:-

i) Villacare ltd (separate units property marketing and property management);

ii) Mentor Group - is supposed to be the parent company to all listed but also receives the project management business;

iii) Sigimo Developers

iv) Homes Kenya Ltd - runs Homes Kenya magazine and in the past prime homes magazine; also runs Homes expo;

v) Homesfix

In 2006 villa care had about 70 projects they were engaged as marketers in various areas of Nairobi and Mombasa.

This is what necessitated the various platforms to market the houses including the homes expo and the two magazines.

Prime Homes was supposed to be a magazine for the upper-class properties.

Homes Kenya for all property.

No such marketing platforms were in place until then and the Kenyan property market was surging.

The problem with handling 70 projects is that you need an almost similar number of (70) staff to handle clients.

Meanwhile the firms systems were growing.

Majority of staff at this projects would be caught up in their own attempts to fund colorful lifestyles.

Majority of these staff have ever since left but today if you open the Standard newspaper property classified ads, the Villacare Alumni operate majority of the firms listed, staying in direct competition with their former employer with mixed success.

Strange things used to happen then... a good level of disorganization...because it was a young organisation...

More than 90% of the staff were from Mr. Ojijo's ethnic community.. hence business would mothertongue (kikuyus, kisiis and kambas also to this a lot with their companies). I am not sure whether the situation has changed a lot but at the time the principal himself was concerned by HR delivery.

The magazine vs plagiarism - while limited in new information for industry insiders; these magazine had a lot of 'news' for prospective home buyers.

Valley View Estate vs construction cost. A bit of hogwash. Trying to fix the construction price against the market price. Those houses did not even sell at 2.4 M. In 06 most sold at circa 3.0 and today worth circa 4.5 -5 M.

Industry insiders know more about the problems of Valley View that make the cracks appear to child's play. Severe cracks in any case are the liability of the contractor.

On the converse look at what effect Valley View Estate did to Athi River area. This is an area that hitherto had little or no organised development. With the advent of Valley View the entire section has grown in epic proportions with at least six new housing development estates.

Land values have more than quadrupled up to Kitengela i.e. 1 acre at 150 k to nowadays 1 M and even higher. (there is of course the dualing of the carriageway to consider).

There are the other 150 or so projects that Mr. Ojijo has helped get to the market. Both sides of the industry (pro and anti Ojijo) agree whatever transgressions, Villacare has helped shape the last decade in property in Kenya in a way no one else will ever match. At least in the near future.

For ekmugo the reputation of the firm should comprise about 10% of your decision to work with it.

Projects are very different due to the environment; and factors surrounding the success of each project vary from project to project.

There are 4 key factors in the selection of the off plan project to buy into:-

i) the developer

ii) the team of professionals they are working with (total team experience)

iii) the contractor selected for the project and their reputation in the industry

iv) the availability of bridging finance to complete the project

@ Djinn

ekmugo is buying a flat not a magazine. If he was asking whether it was worth buying a HomeExpo magazine for Ksh.100/= then your reponse and links would have had weight.

no pan intended. I just like criticizing critics.