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BY VICTORIA AMUNGA | 5484 MEDIA | KENYA
STORY HIGHLIGHTS
- Land prices in Kenya’s coastal towns have risen by up to 79% over five years
- Remote workers, retirees and diaspora buyers are fueling demand for coastal living
- Researchers say the coast is emerging as a distinct lifestyle and investment market
Kenya’s coastal property market is experiencing a sharp rise in land prices, driven by growing demand from remote workers, retirees, diaspora investors and long-stay visitors seeking lifestyle destinations.
According to research by , coastal land markets are increasingly operating independently from wider national economic trends, signalling the emergence of the coast as a distinct lifestyle and investment asset class.
Coastal Towns Record Sharp Price Growth
The study found that land prices in several coastal towns rose significantly between the fourth quarter of 2020 and the fourth quarter of 2025.
recorded the highest increase, with prices rising by 79.1%, while saw prices grow by 70%.
Other areas including and also registered some of the strongest land value increases nationally.
Researchers said the trend reflects a shift away from the coast being viewed primarily as a tourism destination towards a longer-term residential and investment market.
Remote Work and Retirement Shaping Demand
The report says the rise of remote work and lifestyle migration has accelerated demand for permanent and semi-permanent coastal living.
Areas offering natural beauty, beachfront access and lifestyle amenities are attracting both local and international buyers.
“Coastal land has delinked from general economic trends in Kenya on new dynamics during the 2020s,” said Sakina Hassanali, Co-Chief Executive and Creative Director at HassConsult.
“Across remote working, retirement relocation, and the long tail of international and domestic buyers who first discovered the Coast as tourists, it has developed its own, distinct land dynamics,” she added.
Beauty and Beachfront Access Fuel Premium Prices
The research found that areas with narrower beaches, lower accessibility and fewer lifestyle facilities still recorded average land price growth of about 40% since 2020.
Growth has also expanded into areas around , and .
According to the report, proximity to the beach remains one of the biggest drivers of land value.
“The beauty premium is also the leading price factor within areas, with beachfront properties in Nyali, for example, selling for 19% more than the average for the area,” said Ms Hassanali.
The index covered 12 coastal towns stretching from Lamu in northern Kenya to Diani in the south.
