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Sikhumbuzo Moyo, [email protected]

THE soaring demand for family accommodation has pushed prices for housing stands in Bulawayo “beyond the reach of many”, as the local authority struggles to avail enough land for thousands of home seekers on its official housing waiting list.

Now standing at 140 150, up from 139 958 in May this year, according to the latest council minutes, the Bulawayo housing waiting list has been rising steadily over the years despite a number of residential stands being availed by private land developers contracted by council.

Limited capacity to avail and service more stands, coupled with steep prices, has seen many home seekers on the housing waiting list fail to secure land to build their houses. Some of the home seekers have been on the housing waiting list since 1990s. 

A recent snap survey by Chronicle has shown that for a medium-density residential stand, private developers charge no less than US$15 000 of which 40 percent is paid upfront with the remainder cleared within 12 months. 

In high-density suburbs, a 200 square metre stand goes for between US$6 000 and US$7 000.

In rural district councils like Tsholotsho, and Nkayi, residential stands range between US$2 600 for high-density areas to US$6 000 for low-density areas.

The prices for stands in major cities have been steadily increasing over the years at a time when earnings for workers have remained stagnant. 

In the absence of favourable mortgage financing from banks, higher levels of informality, and average monthly earnings of below US$500, including civil servants, a majority of people cannot afford such private sector-driven housing stands development.

“It’s a struggle to afford a housing stand in Bulawayo at this price level. Imagine having to work a lifetime just to buy a stand, what about raising funds to build the house itself,” said one of the home seekers on the waiting list. 

Observers have said this has left a few individuals with money, the elite class and mostly Zimbabweans in the diaspora who are not on the waiting list, being able to secure the stands and build houses on record time.

The council’s chairperson for Health, Housing and Education Committee, Councillor Ntombizodwa Khumalo of Ward 23, expressed the frustration of home seekers saying the housing list will remain bloated as long as stand prices are too steep.

“Housing stands are availed by council through private developers whose fees are just too high. We have stands costing as much as US$19 000 in some areas and who can afford that,” said Cllr Khumalo.

She said the housing list could be reduced if council adopted the pre-sale programme where houses are built and those on the waiting list occupy them while continuing to pay for the structure but raised fears that some beneficiaries may start defaulting in paying their dues.

“People don’t want to pay for services, right now council is owed huge amounts of money in outstanding bills by both residents and the business community, which constrains whatever plans council may be having,” said Cllr Khumalo.

“So, it is also upon us residents to assist council by paying our bills.”

Bulawayo United Residents Association (Bura) chairperson, Mr Winos Dube, said the local authority must think outside the box instead of singing the same hymn of economic challenges and depleted revenue source.

“We want to call on our council to think outside the box. Let them give themselves an annual target where they will commit to availing a given number of residential stands or even building low-cost houses,” he said. “We don’t expect them to clear this backlog in a year but if they set an annual target, the figure will also be going down.”

Mr Dube said as part of the memorandum of understanding with private developers, council could set a clause that whatever number of stands will be serviced and availed, a certain percentage will be parcelled out under council conditions for affordability to many.

Commenting on the issue, Bulawayo City Council spokesperson, Mrs Nesisa Mpofu, explained the pricing of stands and revealed that there were 10 developers contracted by the local authority for the servicing of residential stands with a total of 5 045 stands expected to be realised at the end of these contracts. “The selling of the stands is done by the contractors, and their charges are based on their level of investment in the servicing. There is no flat charge to the sale of housing stands,” said Mrs Mpofu.

She said Cowdray Park Lots, being developed by Aggregate Pvt Ltd has 151 stands, Norwood Tracks Phase 1-2045 under Masimba Murena JV has 1 015 stands, Luveve North under Natwecraft has 453 stands while Enock Construction is developing 650 stands in Mahatshula East.

Rent a Roof is working on 1 000 stands in Cowdray Park with Heaven View Properties having 1 209 stands in Umganini Phase IV Lot One and Lot Two. Valentina Investments has 272 stands in Lot Three (Umganini Phase IV) while Cabin Lock Construction in Lot Four is working on 479 housing stands.

The Infrastructure Development Bank of Zimbabwe (IDBZ) Willsgrove Phase 2 is expected to develop 149 stands.

 “Our prices are basically determined by the cost of providing services such as roads and sewer systems, which is mandatory as per the Government’s National Housing and Settlements Policy (NHSP),” said a land developer who spoke on condition of anonymity. 

The NHSP, developed by the Ministry of National Housing and Social Amenities after noting deficiencies in the National Housing Policy of 2012, seeks to contribute to the country’s Vision 2030.

The provisions of the policy govern all settlements in Zimbabwe and states that settlements are areas where people live, work and play, connected and served by road, transport, water, sanitation, Information Communication Technology (ICT), natural and energy infrastructure. 

It states that all state-land earmarked for human settlements will be channelled through the ministry responsible for human settlements development and the respective local authorities having regard to objects of the devolution thrust in the local governance domain. Under these regulations title will only be issued for fully serviced or developed stands and on agro-plots and no beneficiary shall be permitted to occupy land before services are in place.

Last month, the city’s assistant director of housing and community services (social services), Ms Linda Sibindi told the council’s Health, Housing and Education committee that funds permitting, low-cost houses and residential stands would be availed for vulnerable groups while plans to have more gated communities were being considered.

A gated community is a form of a residential estate with controlled entrances and exits coupled with barricades in the form of a perimeter of walls and fences.