By Leonita Mhishi
WHEN Tendai’s nephew in Manchester called from behind the wheel of a rented car, describing how he had finally bought a plot in Ruwa, there was a mix of joy and disbelief in his voice.
For many Zimbabweans scattered across continents, the dream of “home” carries both sentimental weight and financial calculation.
Across our cities and towns, stories like Tendai’s nephew are reshaping not just family conversations but the very contours of Zimbabwe’s real estate market. Foreign investment — especially from the diaspora — is no longer a sidebar in our property narrative. It is central to how land is bought, sold, developed, and valued.
For decades, Zimbabwe’s real estate market was driven primarily by local demand, economic cycles, and state policy. But over the last several years, a new force has risen: foreign capital channelled into property development and acquisition, a trend led not just by big multinational investors but, more significantly, by Zimbabweans living abroad.
The impact of this influx is both profound and paradoxical, boosting market activity while also introducing tensions around affordability, speculation, and local access to property.
Recent data shows the scale of this influence. In 2024, diaspora remittances to Zimbabwe rose to US$2,2 billion, a 22 percent increase from the previous year, with a significant share being channelled directly into real estate purchases.
Prime urban districts like Borrowdale and Pomona in Harare are among the top choices for these buyers, particularly for gated estates and lifestyle homes that promise security, stability, and the potential for rental income.
Across these affluent suburbs — alongside emerging hubs such as Ruwa, Damofalls, and Norton — the narrative is increasingly shaped by diaspora demand. What was once a market dominated by local elites and domestic buyers now reflects global flows of capital seeking refuge from currency volatility, inflation, and uncertain investment opportunities abroad.
Many in the diaspora view Zimbabwean land and property as tangible, hard assets — a place to park savings, hedge against macroeconomic uncertainty, and maintain roots in their homeland.
This phenomenon is not confined to residential stands and family homes. Institutional investors and real estate funds are noticing the trend too. Tigere REIT, a real estate investment trust listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange, recently reported a resurgence in property market activity in 2025, driven in part by sustained diaspora remittances and rising participation from institutional capital seeking refuge from currency risk.
The company’s quarterly update noted strong demand for income-generating assets — cluster housing, retail centres, and warehousing — as liquidity flows into property to preserve value amid economic uncertainty.
For everyday Zimbabweans, these trends create a complex emotional and economic landscape. On the one hand, foreign investment has undeniably injected vitality into the property sector. Developments that might have stagnated due to financing constraints now find buyers, new construction projects support jobs, and the broader market gains a degree of resilience.
According to a 2026 economic outlook report by FBC Securities, foreign currency receipts and sustained diaspora participation continue to underpin demand across residential and mixed-use developments, with rental yields and property performance showing encouraging trends.
But there is a flip side, and it is one that hits close to home for many Zimbabweans. As foreign capital pushes up demand, prices in key segments have risen sharply, particularly in high-demand suburbs.
This makes entry into the market increasingly difficult for first-time local buyers and wage earners whose salaries have not kept pace with property inflation. For those with stable incomes within Zimbabwe’s economy, the dream of owning a home — let alone a property in a thriving suburb — is becoming distant.
In conversations with estate agents and developers, one sentiment recurs: “Foreign buyers, especially those paying in US dollars, set the benchmark price for many properties.” These buyers often pay in hard currency and are willing to wait for long-term appreciation rather than immediate returns.
Local buyers, by contrast, often need financing, face higher interest rates, and must balance homeownership with everyday expenses. The result? Markets tilted toward those with greater purchasing power, whether from abroad or through institutional capital.
Yet Zimbabwe’s real estate isn’t shaped solely by diaspora money. According to the Zimbabwe Investment and Development Agency (ZIDA), in the fourth quarter of 2024, real estate attracted approximately US$2 billion in foreign investment, representing nearly half of the total committed investment that quarter.
These figures underscore that formal foreign direct investment (FDI) — not just diaspora remittances — plays a substantive role in developing major projects, from residential estates to retail complexes and mixed-use urban spaces.
Foreign involvement also brings technological and professional exchange. International developers often introduce new design standards, construction technologies, and management practices that can elevate local capabilities.
Exposure to global trends — such as smart city features, energy-efficient designs, and international leasing models — enriches local expertise. This, in turn, can make Zimbabwean properties more attractive to a broader set of investors and occupants.
But the interplay between foreign capital and local real estate also exposes gaps in policy and governance. Despite the absence of legal restrictions on foreign ownership of property, practical challenges persist.
Buyers — both local and foreign — frequently struggle with title deed delays, opaque documentation, and sometimes unscrupulous intermediaries. As one recent market analysis noted, without clear verification processes and safeguards, property purchases, especially from abroad, can expose investors to fraud or disputes.
For Zimbabweans in the diaspora, this risk is not hypothetical. Stories abound of individuals who have poured savings into property only to discover unclear titles, duplicated sales, or delayed approvals. These incidents have prompted calls for stronger regulatory frameworks and digital verification systems that can give confidence to both foreign and local investors.
Yet even amid these structural tensions, there is a human story that often gets overlooked. For many in the diaspora, investing in Zimbabwean property is more than a financial manoeuvre — it is an act of connection and belonging.
Buying that stand in Ruwa, that cluster home in Mount Pleasant Heights, or that peri-urban parcel in Norton carries with it the hope of return — to retire one day, to raise children in their cultural homeland, to create a space where their families can gather.
For Tendai’s nephew, the property is not just an asset; it is a promise — to build a future rooted in Zimbabwe but informed by global experience and capital.
This emotional dimension is a powerful driver behind foreign investment in the real estate sector. It sustains demand even in times of economic uncertainty and reaffirms the deep bonds that Zimbabweans maintain with their homeland, regardless of where life has taken them.
As Zimbabwe’s economy evolves, the role of foreign capital in real estate is likely to grow more complex. It raises critical questions about affordability, access, governance, and national development priorities. But it also offers a powerful reminder: that people invest not just for profit, but for identity, legacy, and hope.
In navigating this terrain, policymakers, developers, and citizens must strike a balance — attracting foreign capital that fuels growth while protecting the aspirations of ordinary Zimbabweans who dream of owning a piece of their homeland. Because in the bricks and beams of every house, there lies not just financial worth, but the story of who we are and where we belong.
Mhishi is the principal registered estate agent at House of Stone Properties and can be reached at +263 772 329 569 or via email at leonita@hsp.co.zw or www.hsp.co.zw