Testimonials
Lumen’s professionalism coupled with care and clarity made the entire buying process very straight forward and hassle free for me, as a foreign investor. Gundip Virdi is a reputable builder and catered to my investments needs personally. My investment is already appreciating as forecasted by Lumen and I highly recommend exploring investment opportunities with Lumen Properties. – S. Mathur
Simply a reliable and solid developer with a great past record. – Mo Chana
We are pleased to recommend Gundip Virdi, Atelier Residency Ltd, as a developer for an individual or family searching for the ideal apartment/home for their unique situation. Gundip is your professional If you need a good home, neighborhood and security. I recently visited the site with an architect from TRIAD ARCHITECTS, a renowned architectural firm and better yet, the architect highly commended him for a great job and this sealed my views of Gundip’s professionalism. – Mrs Chweya
Located on David Osieli Road, Westlands, is this 7 storey boutique Green and Sustainable Residential Apartment development. It comprises of an assortment of Studios, 1 Bedroom and 2 Bedroom apartments, along with 2, 4 Bedroom penthouses.
Atelier Residency, an environmentally friendly apartment development is designed for optimum natural light and natural ventilation. It uses Grade A finishes throughout as well as LED energy saving lighting and high-grade water saving fixtures in the bathrooms. The building is cool in the hot months and warm in the cold months, thereby maintaining an optimum interior temperature within the human comfort zone. Being environmentally friendly, the building uses less energy and costs less to function, thereby saving its owners a considerable amount in utility bills.
Features
- Rooftop Pool and Common Area
- Lots of natural light and natural ventilation
- Stunning views of Westland, Town, Ngong and beyond
- High Grade washrooms finished with water saving fixtures
- 2 High Speed High Grade lifts
- Full back up Generator
- Ample water on property
- LED lighting
- Water saving fixtures
- International High Grade tiles
- Wood/Bamboo flooring
- Wood doors
- Ample security on property
- Ample car parking on property
- Ample visitors parking
- Practical and functional design
- Grade A finishes throughout
- Balconies in all apartments
THE LOCATION
Nairobi, also known as ‘The Green City in the Sun’, has a population of close to 4.5 million people and almost 9.5 million within the Greater Metropolitan area. It is an extremely attractive city for Real Estate investment as it has cemented its status as one of the financial hubs in Africa, let alone East Africa. Nairobi is Cosmopolitan and a multi-cultural metropolis with countless international companies, NGOs, embassies and other International Organisations. It is very liveable and buzzes with numerous different types of cuisines, bars, restaurants and shopping.
ATELIER RESIDENCY is located in one of the most desirable, accessible and central urban neighbourhoods in the city, called Westlands. Westlands is extremely walkable, safe and the main hub for numerous restaurants, bars, lounges and shopping in Nairobi. It has a healthy mix of home owners and tenants, different cultures and all demographics.
RETURN ON INVESTMENT (ROI)
There are 2 points to consider when calculating ROI with Property Investments: Rental Income & Property Appreciation
Rental Income
We are estimating a ROI for Unfurnished apartments in the range of 5 – 7% per annum based on our market studies and discussions with Realtors knowledgeable about ATELIER RESIDENCY’s location. The advantages of renting Unfurnished are that you get (relatively) long term tenants and management is minimal.
Our estimated ROI for Serviced (furnished and all inclusive) apartments in the range of 7 – 10%. Even though you may get short term tenants, the ROI is better. However, you may also get long term tenants interested in an all-inclusive solution, especially expats but the management is more involving and you have to spend a fair amount initially to furnish the apartments.
10
%07
%Property Appreciation
The property market in Nairobi has been depressed for the last 3 years. Since 2017, property prices have plunged between 15 – 35% in Nairobi, especially in high end areas which offer great bargains currently. We feel that since it is a buyer’s market, property prices will only rise in the mid to long term, hence our bargain offers for ATELIER RESIDENCY.
We are confident that if you buy our apartments preconstruction at ATELIER RESIDENCY, your property will appreciate by at least 10 – 15% by the time the project is complete.
15
%
BUYING PROCESS (PRECONSTRUCTION)
Step 1
Sign a Letter of Offer through the lawyer with 20% deposit.
Step 2
Sign a Sale Agreement through the lawyer stipulating the agreed price, exact apartment number, parking, agreed installment terms and other clauses.
Step 3
Pay installments for the duration of the construction period, visit the site and look forward to completion!
Step 4
Occupy the apartment and obtain a TITLE by way of a Long-Term Lease.
FOREIGN INVESTOR INFORMATION
Investing in Kenya is easy for foreigners. As long as your source of funds can be verified, transferring funds to and from Kenyan banks is not a problem. For quick calculations use 1 USD = 110 KES. ATELIER RESIDENCY offers great Return on Investment for the Foreign Investor.
Opening a bank account: Besides all the usual documents required, you will need a KRA PIN (Kenya Revenue Agency Personal Identification Number), disclosure on source of funds and a Letter of Introduction from the lawyer. The latter is obtained once you sign a Sale Agreement for the purchase of the apartment and can be used to obtain a KRA PIN.
Alternatively, for the purposes of rental, if you wish not to open up a bank account, our company Lumen Properties can manage your rentals, receive your rents and pay all your expenses on your behalf for a 10% (on rental income) management fee for Serviced Apartments and 8% for Unfurnished Apartments.
A KRA PIN will be required regardless of if you open up a bank account. This can be facilitated for you by the lawyer via a Letter of Introduction (above).
Taxation: Double taxation will be avoided with any country that has a tax treaty with Kenya. USA, Canada, UK and other countries have these tax treaties. The flat rate for residential rental income tax on monthly income up to KES 500,000 is 10%. Your KRA PIN will be used for taxation in Kenya.
MANAGEMENT OF THE BUILDING
Once ATELIER RESIDENCY is complete, the main TITLE for land and building shall be transferred to the management company, ATELIER RESIDENCY MANAGEMENT LTD (already formed). Each apartment owner shall have one share in this company, which will be responsible for managing all the common areas of ATELIER RESIDENCY as below. Cost of maintenance shall be paid for by each owner by way of a monthly SERVICE CHARGE, which for ATELIER RESIDENCY shall be in the region of KES 7-9 per sqft.
Atelier Residency Management Ltd shall be made up of a management committee of no more than 7 board members, each of whom will be owners of apartments. This board shall represent all owners of all apartments in ATELIER RESIDENCY and shall outsource management of common areas to a Third-Party company as follows:
- Cleaning of common areas
- Building Insurance (occupant’s contents insurance is separate)
- Fuel for the generator OR maintenance for Solar back up system
- Maintenance – Fire Equipment
- Maintenance – Garden
- Maintenance – Lifts
- Maintenance – Generator
- City Council Rent
- Local Authority Rates
- Refuse Collection & Disposal
- Security
- Wages – Property Staff
- Audit Fees
Water and Electricity will be paid for by each apartment.
Building repairs shall be paid for by each owner by way of an assessment if and when the time comes. Since we build for durability and quality, you will be able to enjoy your investment headache free for years to come.
Formed in 2015, Lumen Properties is the developing company for atelier residency, which is a boutique eco-friendly residential development in the heart of Westlands, Nairobi. Lumen Properties are the sustainable developers and a sister company to Atelier International Architects. Both are passionate about sustainability, practicality and elegance in design and development.