Relationship between heuristic based biases and the performance of real estate market in Kenya

Abstract

The Kenyan real estate market has delivered greater price stability than all international markets surveyed. Despite this, Kenya has the lowest real estate returns in the Eastern Africa. This study attempted to determine the contribution of heuristic based behavioural biases in influencing real estate performance in Kenya using a sample of 353 individual investors. To test the hypothesis, Model R2, ANOVA statistics and regression coefficients were generated and interpreted. The results indicate that heuristic bias negatively influence the performance of real estate industry. The findings provide an eye-opener and basis of appreciation of the effect of behavioural biases on the real estate market. Real estate investors can use these findings to understand the market dynamics and incorporate behavioral factors in analyzing the markets performance.