The Center for Affordable Housing Finance (CAHF) in Africa recently presented new data about housing and construction in Zambia and the rest of Africa.
CAHF has been collecting data on house prices, construction costs, and income across Africa for the past 6 years.
The data is being explored as it relates to affordability and access to housing in Africa.
Zambia House Prices and Sizes
In 2011, the cheapest house built by a private developer in Zambia was 71 square meters (m2) at the cost of USD81,914, or USD1,154 per m2.
In 2015, the same house would cost USD65,000, or USD916 per m2, representing an decrease of 26%.
For comparison, in Zambia’s neighboring country Zimbabwe, the cheapest house built by a private developer was 48m2 at the cost of USD10,000, or USD208 per m2.
Zambia Cost of Cement
In 2011, the cost of a 50kg bag of cement in Zambia was USD12. In 2015, the price fell to USD8.
Accordingly, in 2015 it would cost 5.9% of the average urban annual income in Zambia to afford the cement needed to build a 40 square meter house.
In Zimbabwe, the price of a 50kg bag of cement was USD10 in 2011 and rose to USD12 in 2015.
Accordingly, in 2015 it would cost 5.8% of the average urban annual income in Zimbabwe to afford the cement needed to build a 40 square meter house.
