Browsing: real estate

Jayesh Shah Zimbabwe’s reclusive multimillionaire

Business

New Zimbabwe went on to report that the court ruled that in the case of First Merchant Bank failing to reimburse Shah and his company, the Bank of Zambia was held liable and, in the alternative, the Attorney General was ordered to pay if the funds could not be found. The culmination of this dispute is that Shah and his company are in for a particularly large windfall of cash. The reclusive Indian business tycoon is said to have business interests in Zimbabwe, Zambia, and India.

Despite his wins in business Jayesh Shah has never successfully shaken off the controversy that comes from the notable success a person enjoys in any endeavour. Success always breeds as many admirers as it does critics. Tendai Biti, who was Zimbabwe’s finance minister at one time during the Government of National Unity, called Jayesh Shah a “loan shark of Indian descent”.

The opposition leader made this highly disparaging remark after revelations that Jayesh Shah and another equally controversial business, Nicholas van Hoogstraten were providing cash loans to Zimbabweans against their immovable properties on unsustainable and usurious terms when the inevitable eventuality of default occurred by the borrowers, the lenders Jayesh Shah and Nicholas van Hoogstraten would move in and realize the property against which the original loan was secured.

African real estate market is an investor’s goldmine 

Investing

Africa has never been at a better time to capitalize on the real estate market. The sector is rigged with plenty of modern technology that offers myriad opportunities that shift away from traditional uses and increase transparency and efficiency. 

Africa Business Insider pointed out ten pathways for investors to benefit from investing in the African real estate market in 2022. 

Long-term residential rentals are argued to be one of the fastest ways for an investor to garner profits as the rising population in Africa calls for substantial development of decent shelter. 

Real estate investment trusts (REITs) allow investors to acquire profits without holding physical property. According to Business Inside Africa, REITs provide diverse opportunities to investors, primarily in the market niches.

Alternative real estate investments for the retail investor

Industry and Trade

One of the features that make the property unique as an investment is that it has a high unit value in comparison to other investments.

A nominal amount like ZWL$1,000.00 can buy an individual investor shares of a publicly listed company on the ZSE and the same amount in US dollars can purchase a decent number of shares through an offshore brokerage account.

This is not usually the case with real estate. There is very little an individual investor can do with ZWL$1,000.00 in terms of direct property investment, at least in the conventional sense.

Even with access to mortgage finance, an investor will also tend to be limited by their credit standing in terms of the funds that they can deploy into property investments.