UGANDA, Kampala | Real Muloodi News | According to the Knight Frank H2 2020 Kampala Market Update Report, the industrial sector rent has remained stable, yet office and residential sectors declined amid the pandemic.
The report showed a decline in residential and office sectors because of lockdown measures imposed by the government towards mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic. The report cites a decline in revenue and an increase in expenditure.
Ironically, the Uganda Bureau of Statistics commended Uganda’s GDP Growth at 20% for the 2019/20 financial year.
Judy Rugasira Kyanda, Managing Director of Knight Frank Uganda, told ChimpReports how the turnover of tenants in retail had remained problematic.
According to the Bank of Uganda, thanks to the easing of lockdown measures in June 2020, the real estate sector recorded improvements. While residential and offices suffered rental costs, the industry sector space remained relatively stable.
According to the report, general business optimism eventually rose between September and November 2020, showing an increase in business.
The report also foresees further disruption in the economy (2021-2022 financial year), as many struggle to recover from the effects of the pandemic. Based on the Daily Monitor report, Kampala landlords offered waivers to tenants.
It’s noteworthy that office space vacancy increased by 6%, while prime residential occupancy declined by 8%.
The Knight Frank report also shows a surge in online businesses and entry of outlets like Turkish brand LC Waikiki, alongside the expansion of Carrefour in Uganda.
These events show a varying contrast of sectors and their response to the pandemic in 2020. The most notable is the real estate industry, where unit apartments experienced an upsurge in prime locations like Bukoto and Kololo.
Notable among the trends was also a re-imaging of residential apartments. These took on new pandemic-influenced aspirations, as potential occupants seized on multipurpose deals considering new realities of remote work, homeschooling, among other preferences.
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