Nimekuwa nikiwatch documentaries za life ya majuu. I noticed huko homelessness is a very big issue. Nikashindwa hata our shit-hole does not have such a high number of homeless people. Almost everyone has a roof over their head ata kama ako Kibera.
Huko majuu corruption levels are too low so it hurts the common man on matters housing. The process of getting a building permit is extremely complicated. That means demand always outstrips supply by a large margin. Meanwhile huku you only need to grease a few hands ujenge bedsitters and have @Ndovu and his family of 6 move in wasilale nje kama lori. Western nations have regulated themselves to crises.
Governments are inefficient. That’s why corruption is a necessary evil to grease the wheels of bureaucracy. In a country without corruption, only the upper class benefit. In a country with too much corruption, everyone suffers. There is an optimal level of corruption above or below which people start to get hurt.
Most of you don’t know, but the only reason why you live in a nice and affordable townhouse/apartment/mansion is because the bastarts at the county land offices take bribes ensuring that new properties continue to be constructed keeping rents low.
Too much corruption is bad. Too little corruption is also bad because governments are inefficient. If you didn’t know, now you know why a peasant in Githurai has a roof over their head but some guy in Manhattan is sleeping in the streets.
Corruption is usually a symptom and work around for overregulation. Where overregulation is eliminated, corruption disappears along with it.
That is why many things in developing countries are overregulated on purpose, so that the bureaucrats get cash on the side to speed things up. Some business license that would take you a week in a developed country will take you several months in a developing country.
People are homeless not because there are no houses but because they lack the means to pay rent. There will be many unoccupied houses even as people sleep outside. In a money economy, you will die of hunger while pets enjoy meals you cannot afford.
Something else, the strict rules are a catalyst in the housing sector since investors are assured that they don’t risk losing their money by getting substandard properties and they can easily offload their properties since the standards are guaranteed by authorities.
Wacha taungalie cause and effect hapa. It’s very easy to pin homelessness to financial factors but in reality, finances are just a trigger. Majuu homelessness is caused mostly by mental sickness. Many times it’s schizophrenia, deep depression or anxiety or such illnesses. I worked the system so I know what I’m saying. 1st world countries have ways to support the lowest earning individuals ( subsidized housing, free food, etc) but hao wasee homeless don’t follow up.
Everyday in those homeless encampments, wasee upitia offering jobs but their offers are rarely taken up. Kuna waafrika wengi sana hapo hizo homeless places. Wakenya kadhaa. Just ask yourself, how come they were not homeless in Africa, but turned so in the land of opportunity.
The mental illness is triggered by difficult financial circumstances that lead people to substance abuse, family instability, and eventually homelessness. Proof: Most homeless people regain their footing once they get some help either through shelters or similar other arrangements.
The average Kenyan is much poorer than the average American, but I know almost every Kenyan has a roof over their head. The issue is the absence of affordable properties to rent because the little guy is unable to cut through the bureaucracy to provide housing. Huku a regular person will buy a 50*100 somewhere, bribe county officials, and build a few single rooms or bedsitters for the most disadvantaged people to live in. That’s what countries like America lack based on what I have seen in those documentaries. The process of getting building permits locks out people (mom and pop landlords) who would otherwise provide affordable housing to low income earners. Don’t forget the many design approvals that effectively prevent peasants in those countries from getting a house to rent because those designs are expensive. Huku Kenya build 4 walls, a loo, and some nice plumbing and you house at least one person in that bedsitter. Pia kuna other issues such as credit scores and income verification for tenants which further locks out disadvantaged people. Huku Kenya as long as you can afford rent plus one month deposit, the landlord does not care what you do (generally) or your credit rating.
Trailer parks are being taken over by private equity companies. It is one of the most discussed issues in the media. Owners of the homes do not own the land on which the houses are built. The cost of moving a home at a trailer park is extremely high. Private equity companies have smelt blood and they are buying every trailer park they can get their hands on. Then they jack up the rent because they know that they have a captive market. After all, owners of the homes cannot afford to move them elsewhere. Its a crazy concept where people own houses but not the land so anyone can just come and buy the land, forcing them to pay whatever rent he demands.
Trailer parks is alittle governed. Cities designate only certain areas to trailer parks. Typically on the outskirts. Owning them has its challenges. Now hiyo ilikua tu example, coz bora uko na job, ata room kwa apartment utapata.
Their population is 6 times more. And like I explained above, homelessness is mostly a health issue. At least wale Unaona chini ya bridge or in camps. Hao ni wagonjwa. It doesn’t matter what help you give them bado watarudi nje. And there’s more than sufficient help. Now if you are talking about people who simply can’t afford affordable housing, and sleep in their vehicles, that’s a different story. Whatever large city you live, there’s affordable housing 1 hour away from city center. Jamaa Kama hao uogopa ku commute. 2 hours a day to a different city to survive and reset. Hao ni kama wale jamaa wanaishi slums Nairobi whereas they could have a much better life in their county. Bora waishi Nai.
No one is mentioning drugs, ju kitambo ufike level ya kutitrate kwa lab hadi upate Crystal meth don’t you think there’s a deep rooted sense of destruction intended.
IMO it’s less about corruption and more about the zoning laws.
Huko majuu they are enforced very strictly and the residents are very resistant to change. So the good places to live utapata they are classified as single family dwelling or something like that.
If the local government tries to change the zoning to allow something like apartments, residents wanakataa kabisa. This keeps supply low and expensive
Urbanization and Economics - You’re disconnected from family, so when shit hits the fan, you are alone. Friends abandon you and find yourself sleeping in a car. Rural folks hawananga hizi shida. For all the government cares you can build a barn and live there.
Non-homogeneous population. Nordic countries, China, Japan and Africa to some extent have low homelessness coz of homogeneity. People have more social ties and will intervene and meddle in your affairs. Ukianza kulala nje kama lorry, your bros, cousins, uncles watafikishiwa habari Butere Mumias.
Mental Health and Drug Use.
Kuna watu hupelekwa shelters and even here in Kenya, children’s home and the following week mtoto ni chokoch tena. The cost of rehabilitating PTSD army vets, schizophrenics and addicts is hundred of billions and this demographic has no votes so they fall into the system’s cracks.
Says someone whose family has benefitted from corruption. Wacha matiangi apate kiti then they grab your ''westlands" home. Ndio utarudi you post benefits of corruption tena
/ Canada 
spend their life savings on student debt, car loan and mortgage