A section of Kenyans who had paid millions each for a chance to own homes has ganged up against the firm's chief executive officer over what they termed as was a scheme to swindle them.
According to a report by Citizen TV on the night of Sunday, May 3, the investors claimed that Banda Homes Limited had failed to deliver houses two years after starting the housing projects.
The investors claimed that they had signed contracts with the company for the construction of residential units in Pinewood and Rosewood estates but two years later, the projects were yet to be completed.
The company rolled out an off-plan project in 2018 aimed at constructing more than 1,000 homes in various estates in Nairobi at highly affordable prices.
The Pinewood section of the project demanded investors to make a payment of Ksh3.9 million each for the homes. One investor, Lawrence Kimani, deposited Ksh1.5 million before topping up the rest.
"The whole of this year, we have been trying to reach him, the owner, Andrew Kamau, but nothing has been happening," stated Kimani.
"I bought a house, through Banda homes in 2018 and completed the payment as agreed and the delivery date was last year, but as you can see, they are far from complete," lamented Anthony Kariuki.
In Rosewood, another investor disclosed that they were expecting the project to be delivered in 2019 but up until May 2020, the houses are not yet complete.
The investors are now threatening legal action against the company overseeing the two controversial projects claimed to have gobbled up Ksh3.9 billion in investor money. They claim that every time a member raises concerns, they get axed from their WhatsApp group.
In its defence, the management of the company argued that there were late payments by some members and that the Covid-19 pandemic had thrown the projects off-course.
"It is true that we have experienced delays and because of various reasons, late payment of clients and slowdown in work. We also underestimated the amount of work we were going to put into that project," stated Andrew Kamau, the director of Banda Homes disclosing that the projects would be pushed forward by a further six or eight months.
"The real estate industry, as other industries on the global landscape, has been significantly affected by the Covid-19 crisis that has hit the world in 2020," explained Fabian Nzivo, the CEO.
Kamau has been covered in the local press as an entrepreneur who has managed to create wealth through innovative real estate ventures.
A Reactors Review profile claimed that the developer, who started a Real Estate company in 2011 under the brand name, Dinara Developers, kept rebranding every time the company became soiled.
In 2013, Dinara changed its name to Lettas before it reportedly morphed into Banda Homes, as it is known today.
The report also claimed that he is still facing court cases dating as far back as 2013.
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