Abay Homes Starts Kings Residence Project with 80 Apartments Planned

August 4, 2026
By Mintesinot Nigussie

Abay Homes Real Estate has started construction of the Kings Residence apartment project, a development expected to deliver about 80 residential units with a projected construction cost of two billion birr. The company launched excavation work for the project last Saturday in the Pepsi area along the Qera-Gotera road in Addis Ababa, with buyers attending the event marking the beginning of construction.

The project comes as real estate developers continue to face rising construction costs, driven largely by increases in the prices of building materials and other inputs. Leul Dereje, consultant at Abay Homes Real Estate, said cost inflation remains one of the major challenges affecting the sector, with developers often facing pressure to revise prices after projects have already started.

“Construction material prices have continued to increase over time. Instead of asking customers for additional payments after prices rise or terminating agreements, developers need to set prices by considering inflation risks from the beginning,” Leul said. He said Abay Homes has been encouraging buyers to make payments above the initial 10 percent requirement outlined in purchase agreements to reduce exposure to future cost increases.

Leul added that unexpected market disruptions, including fuel and input shortages linked to international conflicts, require transparent discussions between developers and buyers to determine how additional costs should be managed. Trust between developers and customers remains another challenge in the real estate market, according to Leul. He said some buyers want to monitor construction progress, while some developers restrict access to project sites.

Abay Homes invited buyers to attend the launch of Kings Residence to allow them to follow the development process from the beginning, which the company said is intended to improve transparency. The company said it has not yet arranged bank financing partnerships for the project as construction has only recently started. Buyers who pay the required 10 percent deposit will have their units constructed under contractual agreements. Leul said the company has included penalties in contracts if it fails to deliver units within the agreed timeframe. Abay Homes, which entered the real estate market two years ago and began selling properties around seven months ago, is also developing the Downtown project near Mexico Square. The project consists of 228 apartments and 220 commercial shops, with more than 60 percent of units already sold, according to the company.

Source: FSX Business News