Plot (50 by 100)

A plot of land. Most residential land in Kenya is sold in standard plots measured in feet, and the most common is the 50 by 100 plot, named after its frontage and depth in feet. Sellers usually describe it as "an eighth of an acre", although the two are not exactly the same size: a true eighth of an acre is a little larger than a 50 by 100 plot. The figures box gives the exact areas. Bigger plots are sold as quarter acres, half acres and acres.

Titles and official searches give the area in hectares (sometimes acres on older titles), not in plot sizes. Always check the hectare figure on the search against the size you are paying for, and have a surveyor confirm the beacons.

Plots sold by land companies are often still on a mother title. Ask whether you will get an individual title for your plot and when.

A rental plot. In daily speech, a "plot" is also a rental building or compound with many rooms, often single rooms and bedsitters, owned by one landlord and run by a caretaker. The Standard's "Diaries of a plot tenant" describes this kind of life: small rooms, shared facilities and a landlord or caretaker on site.