What it really costs to buy a house in Kenya

The asking price is not what a house costs. On top of it, a buyer in Kenya pays stamp duty, their own advocate and a handful of registry fees. A buyer with a mortgage pays the bank's costs as well. On a KES 8,000,000 house in Nairobi, that comes to about KES 494,000 for a cash buyer, and roughly KES 670,000 to KES 920,000 with a 90% mortgage.

Some of these figures are fixed by law and are exact. Others are set by your bank or are negotiable, and for those we give a range. Your advocate should confirm both before you commit to a price.

Stamp duty: 4% or 2% of the price

The rate. Under the Stamp Duty Act, a transfer of property within a municipality is charged at 4%. Elsewhere it is 2%. The Act says municipality rather than urban area, so whether a plot on the edge of a town counts is a question for your advocate. Some websites quote a 6% rate. There is no such rate in the Act, and no Finance Act from 2023 to 2026 changed the 4% and 2%.

What it is charged on. Every sale is referred to the government valuer for its open market value. If the valuer puts the property above the price you agreed, you receive a demand for duty on the difference, payable within 21 days. So in practice duty is paid on the higher of the two figures.

Who pays, and when. The buyer pays it, and the transfer cannot be registered until it is paid. Since November 2023 it has been paid through the Ministry of Lands' systems rather than KRA's iTax. In February 2026 the Ministry rolled out its National Stamp Duty Module across the country, which handles the valuation, the assessment and the payment in one place.

The first-time buyer exemption is narrow. Since 2018, a first-time home owner buying under an affordable housing scheme pays no stamp duty. In practice that means the government's affordable housing units, not a house bought on the open market. The law does not define the scheme precisely, so if you think you qualify, ask your advocate before you count on it.

Our stamp duty calculator works out the duty on either the price or a valuation.

Your advocate: a minimum fee set by law

Conveyancing fees are set by the Advocates (Remuneration) Order. The scale in force dates from 2014, and the Order says an advocate may not accept less than it provides. For a sale, the scale is worked out in bands:

• 2% of the first KES 5,000,000, with a minimum fee of KES 35,000
• 1.5% of the amount from KES 5,000,000 to KES 100,000,000
• 1.25% of the amount from KES 100,000,000 to KES 250,000,000

VAT at 16% is added to the fee. On a KES 8,000,000 house, the fee is KES 100,000 plus KES 45,000, which is KES 145,000, and with VAT it is KES 168,200.

Each side normally pays its own advocate. The exception is buying a flat from a developer, where the buyer is often asked to pay the developer's advocate too, because that advocate registers every lease in the block. Read the sale agreement for this before you sign it. Searches, couriers and copies are billed on top of the fee as disbursements, so ask for an estimate.

Registry fees

These are small, fixed and paid by the buyer:

• Official search: KES 1,000 each, online or at the registry, since April 2024. Expect two: one before you sign and one just before completion. Guides that quote KES 500 are out of date.
• Registering the transfer: KES 1,000.
• Issuing a title or certificate of lease: KES 2,500, where a new one is issued.

Our guide on how to verify land ownership walks through the search itself.

A valuation, if you want one

A cash buyer does not have to commission a valuation, but one tells you whether the price is reasonable and what the government valuer is likely to say. The scale for registered valuers is 1% of the first KES 5,000,000 and 0.25% of the rest, with a minimum of KES 25,000. On KES 8,000,000 that is KES 57,500, plus VAT if the valuer is registered for it. In practice valuers often quote less.

What the seller pays, not you

• The agent's commission is paid by whoever instructed the agent, which in an ordinary sale is the seller. The scale under the Estate Agents (Remuneration) Rules is 10% of the first KES 100,000, 6% of the next KES 900,000 and 3% of the rest, about KES 274,000 on KES 8,000,000. If you hire your own agent to find a house, a lower scale applies, about KES 137,000 on the same price, and that one is yours to pay.
• Capital Gains Tax is 15% of the seller's gain, up from 5% since January 2023. It is the seller's tax, though it can shape the price they will accept.
• Land rates and land rent clearance certificates are customarily obtained by the seller, as documents handed over at completion. The sale agreement should say so.
• Land Control Board consent is needed only for agricultural land, at KES 3,000 to apply. It does not arise on a house in Nairobi.
• VAT is not charged on the sale of a home. It is an exempt supply.

If you borrow

A mortgage adds its own costs. The first two are fixed:

• Stamp duty on the charge: 0.1% of the loan. KES 7,200 on a KES 7,200,000 loan.
• Registering the charge: KES 1,000.

The rest depend on your bank:

• The bank's advocate. Unless agreed otherwise, the Advocates (Remuneration) Order makes the borrower pay the bank's legal fees. On a KES 7,200,000 loan the full scale is KES 115,750, or KES 134,270 with VAT. The Order halves the fee where the mortgage and the transfer complete at the same time, which would make it about KES 67,000. Whether that applies to your bank's panel advocate is a question for your own.
• The arrangement fee. Banks' published mortgage pages in 2026 show 1% to 3% of the loan, which is KES 72,000 to KES 216,000 on KES 7,200,000. It is often deducted from the loan rather than paid in cash.
• The bank's valuation, by a valuer on the bank's panel. Banks quote anything from KES 5,000 to KES 30,000, while the valuers' scale suggests more. Budget KES 30,000 to KES 67,000.
• Insurance. Life cover on the loan and fire insurance on the building are standard conditions. Premiums depend on your age, the loan and the insurer, so get quotes. We do not publish a typical percentage because we could not find one we could stand behind.

Some banks will lend part of the costs as well as the price, and a few advertise up to 105% of the price. Ask your bank for its total cost of credit, which shows the fees and interest together. Our affordability calculator works out the price a monthly budget can support.

Worked example: a KES 8,000,000 house in Nairobi

The assumptions: freehold or leasehold title inside the municipality, a government valuation no higher than the price, no buying agent of your own, the seller providing the clearances, and two official searches.

Buying with cash

• Stamp duty at 4%: KES 320,000 (exact)
• Your advocate's scale fee: KES 145,000 (the legal minimum)
• VAT on the advocate's fee: KES 23,200 (exact)
• Two official searches: KES 2,000 (exact)
• Registering the transfer: KES 1,000 (exact)
• Title or certificate of lease: KES 2,500 (where issued)

Total: about KES 493,700, or 6.2% of the price. With a private valuation, add about KES 66,700, for roughly KES 560,400.

Buying with a 90% mortgage

The loan is KES 7,200,000 and your deposit KES 800,000. On top of the cash costs above:

• Stamp duty on the charge: KES 7,200 (exact)
• Registering the charge: KES 1,000 (exact)
• The bank's advocate, with VAT: KES 67,135 to KES 134,270
• Arrangement fee: KES 72,000 to KES 216,000
• Bank valuation: KES 30,000 to KES 66,700

Total costs: about KES 671,000 to KES 919,000, or 8.4% to 11.5% of the price, before insurance. With the deposit, the cash you need at completion is about KES 1,470,000 to KES 1,720,000, less if your bank finances part of the costs.

If the government valuer puts the house above KES 8,000,000, stamp duty rises by 4% of the difference.

Smaller costs that still need cash

• Water. A new Nairobi City Water account carries a KES 2,500 deposit, and a new connection another KES 2,500, under the tariff gazetted in March 2026.
• Electricity. Moving an existing meter into your name needs a letter and ID from the previous owner, and an unpaid bill on the meter will hold it up. Check the account before completion.
• Apartments. A service charge deposit and a contribution to the sinking fund, the building's savings for major repairs, are usually set in the sale agreement. Find the figures there.
• Moving. Get quotes. Nothing about it is regulated.

Questions to ask your advocate

1. Is this property inside a municipality for stamp duty, so 4% rather than 2%?
2. Am I being asked to pay the developer's legal fees as well as yours?
3. Who obtains the rates and land rent clearance certificates?
4. Is there a consent fee to transfer this lease, and how much?
5. What will your disbursements come to?
6. If I am borrowing, does the half-fee rule apply to the bank's legal fees?

Once you know the full figure, compare it with what homes like the one you want actually ask. Our price index shows asking prices by county, neighbourhood and size, and our step-by-step guide to buying a house covers the process from offer to title.