Nairobi’s apartment market grew for years on a title structure that was never designed for it. Buyers of flats often took long-term subleases on a single mother title, which made each unit harder to finance, sell or charge. The Sectional Properties Act 2020 introduced a different model: sectional titles, where each unit is a separately registrable parcel and the common property is held through a corporation of owners. This guide explains what changed and what buyers and owners should check.
Quick answer: a sectional title gives the buyer a registered interest in a defined unit, together with a share in the common property and membership of the owners’ corporation. Before paying, confirm whether the development has a registered sectional plan or is still awaiting conversion, obtain a search of the parcel register, and review the service charge and corporation records.
What the Sectional Properties Act 2020 changed
Under the older structure, a developer held the mother title and granted long-term subleases of the individual units. The buyer’s interest was a lease, not a share of the land, and the building’s common areas stayed with the developer or the head lessor. Dealings in a unit depended on the head title, and lenders treated the sublease differently from a registered parcel.
The Act provides for sectional plans. A sectional plan divides the building into units and common property, and the units become distinct parcels that can be registered, transferred, charged and inherited. The owner of a unit also holds an undivided share in the common property, which is managed through a corporation of the unit owners rather than by the developer alone.
How the sectional plan and corporation work
The sectional plan is the foundation document. It identifies each unit and the common property, and it is what allows the registry to deal with a unit as a separate parcel. The unit’s entry in the register, not a sales brochure or an allocation letter, is the record of ownership and of any charge, caution or restriction.
The owners’ corporation is the body through which the common property is managed and the shared costs are met. It has rules, office bearers and financial obligations, and it is the body a buyer will deal with after completion for service charge, repairs and management decisions. A development without a functioning corporation is difficult to manage and harder to finance.
What a buyer should verify
| Check | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Sectional plan and parcel register | Confirms the unit is separately registered and who owns it |
| Search certificate for the unit | Shows charges, cautions and restrictions affecting the parcel |
| Corporation records and service charge account | Shows whether shared costs are current and properly managed |
| Unit boundaries and measurements | Matches what is being sold to what the plan shows |
| County approvals and building compliance | Confirms the building and its use are authorised |
| Conversion status, for older buildings | Shows whether the title structure has moved to sectional ownership |
Ask for the last few years of service charge statements and the corporation’s meeting records where they are available. A unit with unpaid service charge or a corporation with no accounts is a risk that the purchase agreement should address, either by clearing the arrears before completion or by adjusting the price.
Off-plan apartments
An off-plan purchase adds time to every question. The developer is selling a unit that does not yet exist on a registered sectional plan, so the buyer needs the approved building plans, the unit description, the payment schedule and a clear account of when the sectional plan will be registered. The sale agreement should make the developer responsible for the registration steps and should identify what happens if the plan is delayed or the unit differs from what was sold.
Payment stages should be linked to verifiable progress rather than to dates alone. Before each payment, the buyer should be able to confirm what has been done and what approvals have been obtained. A developer who resists documentation of progress is a reason to slow down, not to pay faster.
Converting older developments
Many Nairobi buildings were sold on long-term subleases before the Act. The legislation provides a route for those buildings to move to sectional ownership, and existing interests are dealt with in the conversion. Conversion requires work by the developer or the owners: a sectional plan prepared and approved, the register updated, and the existing titles replaced. The process is a project in itself, and it can affect the timing of a sale or a charge.
A buyer looking at an older block should establish whether conversion has been completed, is in progress or has not started. Buying into a building that is mid-conversion is possible, but the agreement should allocate responsibility for the conversion steps and should not leave the buyer carrying a cost the seller should have met.
Service charge and management disputes
Service charge and management are the most common sources of friction in sectional properties. Disputes usually concern arrears, the standard of maintenance, decisions taken without adequate notice, or the way the corporation’s funds are used. The corporation’s rules and the minutes are the first place to look, because they record the decision and the authority for it.
Not every disagreement needs litigation. A written request to the corporation, a special general meeting and a mediated settlement are often faster and cheaper. Where the dispute concerns the register, a caution or an ownership claim, advice should be taken promptly because the register can be altered by dealings that are hard to unwind.
Cost, documents and when to get advice
Costs include the purchase price, the service charge apportionment, legal fees for the transfer and the charge, stamp duty and registration charges, and any corporation charges. Amounts vary with the transaction, so ask for a written estimate that separates fees from disbursements. Do not rely on a deposit receipt as evidence of title: the register is the evidence.
Take advice before signing where the building is mid-conversion, the seller is a company or a person other than the registered owner, the unit is part of an off-plan project, service charge arrears are material, or the corporation is not functioning. The firm’s real estate and conveyancing practice in Nairobi advises buyers, developers and owners’ corporations, and it works alongside the guides on buying off-plan property in Kenya and rates and rent clearance certificates.
Primary sources
- Sectional Properties Act 2020, Kenya Law.
- State Department for Lands and Physical Planning: services, including sectional surveys and registration services.
- State Department for Lands and Physical Planning: frequently asked questions, for the land registration framework.
This article is general information, not legal advice.
