A real estate expert, Olajide Abiola, has said the lack of adequate financing by financial institutions in the country remained a major hindrance to the growth of real estate sector in Nigeria.
Abiola, CEO of Smart Residences Limited who disclosed this in an interview at the weekend said indigenous financial institutions and financial professionals with a limited market and business model scope have failed to identify real and sustainable market opportunities and potentials.
“It is not only our Governments in Africa that play catch up to their Western counterparts as it relate to proactively exploring and charting new ideas and frontiers of development, our private institutions also indulge and lag in this regard.
He, however, gave credit to the federal government for its many mortgage policies and incentives.
“The federal government through the Federal Mortgage bank has made several commendable strides concerning making affordable housing possible for the average Nigerian.
“One or two states have also passed housing mortgage bills to give mass housing a boost. Unfortunately, the majority of the developers aren’t developing affordable housing. Also, financial institutions do not have the patient and long-term capital required for the sector to optimize its inherent potential.
He said there are still lots of underexplored, unexplored and poorly explored areas of opportunities within the real-estate sector.
“Financing options must also be fluid and dynamic enough to ignite and catalyze these opportunities. One of the unfortunate realities in Nigeria is that there is too much idle cash amid limitless investable opportunities.
“The huge gap between Nigeria and its peers is due to the large and increasing population in Nigeria coupled with other factors such as considerable rural-urban migration, high-interest rates on mortgages and weak capacity building in the industry. These deficits and issues make the sector rife with unimaginable opportunities. Problems are the motivation for innovation and solution exploration.
Expert lists factors hindering real estate sector in Nigeria
