Interview with Daniel Ojijo from Villa Care Kenya and Homes Universal

Interview with Daniel Ojijo, CEO of Villa Care and Executive Chairman at Homes Universal

What is your assessment of the real estate sector in Kenya?

I think there is no better time to invest in real estate than now. Kenya is the investment destination of the continent and we are blessed with ideal locations for investment, infrastructure and a thriving economy. The real estate sector contributes up to 12% of the country’s GDP and this is a confirmation for anyone with an interest in real estate that this is one of the most lucrative sectors in the country. Kenya’s lucrative real estate sector has rapidly expanded to become the 4th biggest contributor to the country’s wealth. Kenya is an emerging market which is attracting a lot of interest from investors globally due to the recent increase in Foreign Direct Investment. This means foreigners are directly investing in local industries and markets.

Growth in the real estate sector is driven by government investment in infrastructure favorable demographic trends, and a growing middle class that is spurring development across all real estate sectors.

Villa Care is a real estate services firm focused on delivering high quality and customized services to individuals, the private sector and government clients in Kenya. The firm began operations in 1994 with a team of only 4, but has now grown to over 200. Could you give us an overview of the company’s history?

What separates us from the competition is our delivery and performance. We always strive to meet and exceed our clients’ expectations. Our other strength is that we have been in the market for over 20 years now and we have refined our skills.

Yes, it has indeed been an adventure. We have grown in leaps and bounds and we can only attribute this to the confidence our clients have in our brands and the quality of our offerings. We started out with Villa Care Limited, ideally as realtors, but we have since grown into a conglomerate of 8 companies, all servicing different sectors in the real estate market. One of our most commendable brands that’s a voice to reckon with is Homes Kenya Limited, publisher of Homes Kenya Magazine and organizer of East & Central Africa’s biggest homes show – The Kenya Homes Expo. The magazine has a readership of over 10,000 across East Africa and the expo held twice every year, attracts a footfall of over 40,000 people with an exhibitor list of over 300 real estate companies. Other companies within our fold are Sigimo Enterprises, a developer of high end residential spaces, Mentor Group Ltd which handles project management, HomeFix Ltd, a construction company, Security24, a security company that offers the whole range of security services, Kenya Interiors, an interior design firm and Beyond Media, a branding and communications company.

How can you describe Villa Care’s philosophy and what make you different from the competition?

Our missions is to provide the highest quality of real estate services and advice with diligence, expertise and utmost transparency. What separates us from the competition is our delivery and performance. We always strive to meet and exceed our clients’ expectations. Our other strength is that we have been in the market for over 20 years now and we have refined our skills.

We are the first Kenya real estate company to utilize a revolutionary cloud based property management solution for our property management and also integrate our property marketing with a cloud based CRM solution. This innovativeness has ensured we remain ahead of competition.

Does Villa Care do any type of CSR?

Yes, Villa Care has a very vibrant CSR arm. We support Agape Children’s home in Kawangware, one of the slums in Nairobi. Our employees visit them annually and the company provides support to the disadvantaged children in the home.

What are the main challenges faced by Villa Care on a daily basis, and the challenges of the sector in general?

I think the challenges we face are market challenges in general. We need greater participation of the government in aiding in the construction of homes for all Kenyans by providing support in infrastructure and land. In fact, we are holding the Kenya Homes Expo from 27 – 30 October at the KICC, the theme of it being “Homes For All”. The government is looking into bringing down the rates of home loans to ease access to financing for people who are looking to own their own homes in the country.

You operate in Nairobi and Mombasa. What are your plans in terms of expansion towards the East African region?

We are concentrating on the Kenyan market. We have a very good presence in Nairobi, Kisumu, Mombasa and Eldoret. We also have presence in mainland Tanzania in Arusha and also in Zanzibar. We intend to first harness all the counties in Kenya, but there are plans to explore the wider East African region in the near future.

What is your vision for the future of the real estate sector in the next 2/3 years?

We would like to see a future where everyone is able to have access to their own home. It is not a good site to see low income settlements bordering high end homes. We would also like to see better infrastructure systems and more government partnerships with the private sector.

What is your vision for the future of Villa Care in the next 2/3 years? What would you like to have achieved by then?

Our goal for Villa Care is to increase our market share to about 30% for real estate services in Kenya and expand into the East African region.