Tanzania: NHC says houses not for sale

PEOPLE lining up to purchase houses from the National Housing Corporation (NHC) should brace for massive disappointments as the public utility estate developer rules out the possibility of selling out any of its existing properties.

"The NHC properties belong to all Tanzanians - there are slightly over 15,000 houses so far and if we put them up for sale the move will open up scrambling with millions wanting to own the units, providing loophole for unfair rough plays.

"We have therefore decided not to sell but use the land they occupy as collateral to get loans for building 15,000 new units," said the NHC Board Chairman Mr Kesogukewele Msita, when addressing a press conference here on Monday.

The NHC Board Chairman added that many of the existing housing units were old and worn out and should they be put up for sale, buyers are likely to be targeting the prime located plots on which the houses stand.

"It will be like we are selling land and plots which is against the NHC policy, so we are keeping the area as collateral with which we can secure bank loans to construct 15,000 more houses in the next five years as per our strategic plan 2012-2016," said Mr Msita.

NHC will spend US $1 billion (or 1.5 trillion/-) in executing the ambitious five year project of coming up with 15,000 units at the rate of 3,000 houses per year, the highest step-up from the 66 units that the corporation has been constructing annually since 1976.

The management revealed that 70 per cent of the new houses will be sold to Tanzanians while the remaining 30 per cent are to be rented out to long-term tenants.

He revealed that the first 2,500 new NHC housing units will go under construction from the just starting fiscal year 2011-2012.

"The NHC owns a total of 16,440 buildings, among them 6,840 are commercial structures and 9,600 residential apartments located all over the country," explained Mr Nehemiah Mchechu, the NHC Director General.