You don’t need the full amount to start construction

Gone are the days when you had to first save a lot of money before you start building your house. Nowadays, there are different schemes through which you can get all that you need for your home.

If you’re one of the people who thought that to build a house, you need to be rich, you need to open your eyes because people are building houses and yet they do not have a lump sum saved somewhere for that purpose.

A case in point is Tom Okelloto, a business man and dealer in furniture. When he started building his house a few years ago, he was worried about how he would raise money for the material.

Okelloto says he then heard about a saving scheme with Hardware World from a friend. “After learning about the scheme, I realised that I did not have to save up enough money to start building my house.”

“I went to Hardware World Ntinda and opened up an account. I was given a form to fill and they took my details. With that account, I keep on depositing small amounts of money for different building materials that I need for the ongoing construction of my house.”

Okellotto who operates an active account with Hardware World now collects different building materials which he has been paying for. He explains that the beauty of this scheme is that he gets the products at the same price as the rate at which he opened his account. He does not have to worry about prices going up.

Scheme for construction material

Sidney Ndundu the Business Manager at Hardware World says they introduced the service to simplify building problems for home developers. “You can open up an account depending on the project you are embarking on.” This account enables you to deposit money for building materials.

He further explains that they keep prices constant for your account. “This removes any pressure on the builders and also gives one piece of mind, he adds.

Ndundu who operates the programme, adds that they usually encourage their clients to come in person and they plan together. “This helps them to break down the project into small manageable stages. Once you have opened up an account, you begin planning and depositing for the foundation, then the structure, rooftop and electrical wiring plus the door fittings.”

Ndundu also encourages clients to come themselves instead of sending builders, “Third parties always inflate prices of the materials,” he says.

Peter Kasule who is also constructing a house says he is part of a similar scheme with Roofings Uganda Limited.

“My engineer told me that I need iron sheets worth Shs7m. However, I did not have the money at hand but then I realised that if I deposited it on an account, I might divert it to other things. So I opened up an account with Roofings Uganda Ltd. At the moment, I have deposited for more than half of the money and I am under no pressure because the scheme has no timeline.”

ADVANTAGES

One of the advantages of such a scheme is that it helps you to buy what you only need. It helps you to avoid buying materials in excess thus preventing wastage and theft.

At Hardware World, he says you can open an account and deposit for different materials. You will be given a receipt for each time you transact. Hardware World has a variety of building materials which range from cement, iron bars, plumbing materials, electrical fittings, and sanitary ware, steel sinks for kitchen and fittings, hardwood doors, among others.

However, Ndundu says they don’t usually encourage longer saving projects. – They prefer to operate busy accounts, where you deposit for two to three months and begin construction. They also do delivery of materials to the site.
Such a scheme will not stress you as a house developer as you can build your house at your own pace.

FURNITURE
For your interior design needs, there are many service providers whom you can approach to furnish your house. Now just like you built your home in stages, there is no rush trying to strain yourself over acquiring some of these household accessories and furniture. Life mate Furniture and Nina interior are among the vast majority of showrooms you could visit with a scheme that can help you furnish your house.

Partnership
According to Janet Tumwebaze, a sales executive with Life mate furniture, they have established a partnership with United Bank of Africa (UBA) where by the bank will help pay for whatever piece of furniture that you might need and they recover their money later through making various deductions from your salary account.

This option is convenient if you are one of those who receive a monthly salary as you get to have your furniture right away and then the bank makes its deductions. However, if you are not comfortable with that option, Tumwebaze says you can go to their head office in Kampala along Jinja Road opposite Shell and make a ten percent deposit on any item that you might want to purchase.

“We normally give you up to four months to clear up for that item. If you exceed the four months without clearing the total balance, we charge a fine,” Tumwebaze says. She explains that the fine is for holding the items in the storeroom which occupies space.

But if you fail to clear the balance totally, worry not because they can still let you choose an item that is the equivalent of the money you will have deposited with them so far.

Instalments
Additionally, Andrew Tumwesige, a sales and marketing executive with Nina Interiors explains they do not have accounts for such a service but rather if a person is interested in a piece of furniture, then one will be required to fill out a form and make deposits towards it.

“You will receive a receipt each time you deposit money until you clear the full balance,” he says. “But you are only given up to two months to clear up. But if stock is reduced to that item then we are forced to contact the customer to find out if they are still interested.

After which we sell the items and interest him/her in another piece of furniture. But if they are not interested then we ask them to pick the equivalent of the amount accumulated so far,” Tumwesige explains.

Building should not be a hectic project for you if you work hand in hand with the hardware dealers and other service providers. You will be able to build your own house without going through setbacks. You can always start with any amount if you’re organised.

OTHER PROVIDERS

Besides Hardware world, you can also open a similar account with CTM, dealers in tiles, san ware, adhesive tapes. According to Evelyn Adong, a sales executive with CTM, there is a scheme where customers can also open up accounts with them and save for a particular item. “Each time you deposit money, you will be given a receipt in acknowledgement of the deposit made,” adds Adong.

WHAT YOU GET ON THE SCHEME
• From Hardware world, you can get construction materials like cement, iron sheets, iron bars and construction services, among others.
• You can also get material for the finishing of your house like tiles, tapes, sinks, bathtubs among others from CTM, San Ware, and Adhesive Tapes.
• You can also get furniture as part of the scheme from Life mate furniture and Nina Interiors.