The Sunday News
Simba Jemwa, Sunday News Correspondent
ZIMBABWEANS living in the diaspora are eyeing up a new, premium real estate development in Bulawayo with up-market, low-density residential stands transforming the site between Gwanda and Harare Roads.
Bulawayo-based property developer, Radar Properties has embarked on a new housing 2100-hectare development known as Kings City which has taken shape so quickly and is promising even greater progress as its full potential is realised.
The project is expected to boost development in the traditional industrial city and the developer, Radar Properties is a welcome change to the real estate market with the stability of a well-established corporate organisation, a division of Radar Holdings Limited, the company that also owns Macdonald Bricks overseeing and driving functions of the development which serves to give potential homeowners confidence in this often-abused market backed by the 75-year reputation of Radar Holdings and Macdonald Bricks.
Kings City is literally a city within a city and is being developed into a premium residential estate that’s poised to raise property development standards in Bulawayo. The estate is a mixed-use development with potential for over 8500 low and medium-density residential stands and an additional industrial, institutional, and commercial stand complement to support the growing infrastructural need that comes with the development. This will translate to a number of public and private schools, shopping malls and centres, business complexes and light industry operations to support the emerging community and neighbourhood.
Located only 8km from Bulawayo city centre, the second largest city in Zimbabwe, Kings City is perfectly placed for accessibility right along Gwanda Road frontage and should serve as a modern extension to the close by city centre. It’s also well placed in relation to the currently existing local school and support amenities such as NUST, Petra College, Christian Brothers College, and School of Mines and Mater Dei Hospital which is a 13-minute drive away.
Radar Properties spokesperson, Ms Sithabile Moyo told this publication that the first phase of the residential development already has 475 fully serviced low-density stands. These stands range in size between 2000m² to 6000m² and have on offer attached to each one, pre- approved house plans. The house plans should serve as a conveyor of the quality building standards expected of Kings City homeowners. There are also two commercial and four institutional stands within this first phase which should accommodate a church, nursery school, primary school and a special needs school. Further work is currently underway to release a further 1200 medium sized stands towards the end of 2022.
She said of the 475 stands available in phase one, more than 300 have already been sold to buyers from across the world with a significant number sold to clients in the United Kingdom, Dubai and the United States of America.
“The stands are well priced for accessibility in line with Radar Holdings’ mission; ‘enhancing stakeholder value and sustainably providing quality, affordable construction and property solutions in our chosen markets’. In line with that drive to avail affordable property to the market, Radar Properties also welcomes mortgage arrangements with potential homeowners and are happy to provide stands as such.
“There is also provision for flexible payment terms that allow potential homeowners to pay over 18 months with no interest charged after a 20% deposit. This is so that more people within the area can afford the stands. To give scope to the project, altogether we are looking at 1 564 low-density residential stands and 7 436 luxury medium-density stands covering a total of over 882 hectares,” Ms Moyo said.
All residential properties at Kings City will be expected to meet a particular standard to ensure increasing market value for homeowners. This will be done through the Kings City Architectural Committee and architectural guidelines that will ensure the aesthetic language of the area is high quality and consistent. The development is also sustainability conscious with deliberate interest towards creating a meaningful city that cares for its environment.
“We are in the process of engaging potential investors to build shopping malls and schools as we also currently wait to get all the necessary approvals for these. Compliance comes standard in Kings City with all approval certificates and documentation on display for all to see on the Kings City website. Radar Properties aims to ensure that homeowners get the confidence they need to make a commitment in a bid to improve the way Real Estate is developed in the country.
“Some of our buyers have asked if we can look after construction on their behalf and we are seeing a situation where we may go this route with a number of our customers particularly those in the diaspora. This would serve to improve both building standards and reliability in getting the job done,” she said.
This comes against the known problem of funds often being misused through family and friend arrangements for diaspora clients. This way, they would be assured of the security of investment with a turnkey solution that better manages their funds.
“Kings City is a beautiful and unique place in Bulawayo. We want to set the standard such that whoever wants to develop the surrounding area around us will follow and that area will retain its uniqueness,” Ms Moyo said.
Radar Properties is also currently in the process of setting up a sustainable service structure for this massive development. These include the provisioning of a solar farm to support the estate’s electrical needs augmented with gas supply for heating. These will be offered as third-party services for homeowners.
@RealSimbaJemwa
