Why some people sell their havens

For investment purposes, one may decide to sell such a beautiful house and put up another one.

Many times people have got a special attachment to their homes that they find it difficult to let go of them. Sometimes they don’t leave their homes peacefully, but circumstances force them to do so.

In Uganda, when people get established in a place, it becomes part of them and they feel like they cannot do without it. That is why shifting for re-settlement elsewhere is not easy. Below are some reasons why people sell their houses.

Financial constraints
Mr Joshua Muyingo, a real estate dealer with Rhino Real Estate Dealers, says it could be financial constraints that force one into selling their house. Mr Francis Kivumbi who was once a resident of Kamuli in Kireka moved into the village, deep in Namanve and sold off his Kamuli haven on lease so that he could raise school fees for his children.

He has 13 children and paying school fees had become problematic, so he had to devise means to cater for his children so that they complete school. “I could not afford to see my children drop out of school so I had to devise means to ensure that they complete their studies. Moving to Mukono was not welcomed warmly by the entire family but there wasn’t any other option,” he explains.

Dissatisfying environment
Mr Ben Omoding, the sports lecturer at Kyambogo University who once resided in Kireka, had to leave his home where he had been for over 18 years to a new house in Mukono.
He says it was not a very hard decision to make because the environment was poor and worse still, the home had become too big for him and his wife alone since all the children had left. He therefore chose to sell it off. “My children built for us a house, far better than the former one. Better still, we were moving to a better environment with less noise from neighbours,” he says.

Lack of space
Mr Daniel Katende shifted from his home town in Kasokoso, a surbub in Wakiso district to a very big spacious home in Namataba village, Mukono district. He sold off the tiny house in town and he is utilising the spacious new land in Mukono. It might be by coincidence that most people move to Mukono, however many say this place has a chunk of land that lies idle so selling off a small house in town can earn you big money to buy land and put up a new house in Mukono.

Mortgage default
There is a new trend of banks and other credit financing institutions taking over people’s houses. This has been as a result of people using their houses as security for acquiring big loans. I have learnt of two family friends, one once a neighbour, lost his house to a bank and was sent back to a two-roomed rental.

Mr Muyingo advises people to take great care while taking loans and if possible, to leave their houses and land out of the bracket of belongings that can be used as security.
“When you offer your house or land as security, you are putting your entire life and family on tension. It is like sacrificing them because when the house or land is taken, you are taken back to zero,” he explains.

Property investment
For others, selling a house is an investment; they sell off one house to put up another. Bishop Edward Muhima of Rukungiri has two homes, one in Kampala where his entire family resides and he is putting up a second one in Rukungiri. He however hopes to sell off his Kampala residence so that he keeps the one in Rukungiri, which he says is more convenient for his pastoral work as well as retirement.

“My family stays in Kampala, I only come here when I am on leave, or when there isn’t too much work to do in the diocese. Otherwise, I spend most of my time in Rukungiri, that is why I have put up a home there and when it gets complete, we all shall all shift there,” he explains.