Stories by Maduka Nweke 

LANDED property remains one of the fast moving businesses that takes little time to appreciate regardless of the location. In Nigeria, it has become a big business because new business requiring its use are on the increase on a daily bases.

For real, nothing compares to Real Estate investment opportunities in Nigeria today if you have enough money to engage in it. There are many business opportunities but so far property investment in Nigeria brings back your capital with profits faster compared to other businesses in Nigeria.

For those who haven’t heard about it, real estate investment in Nigeria has taken a positive trend compared to other investments.

No matter what, Real Estate investment in Nigeria is the best business you should put into account. Nigeria has a conducive environment for investment in real property compared to other countries in West Africa and as the country grows, many people tend to leave rural life to urban life and for that reason,

there is always a shortage of housing in every city and town in Nigeria. Experts have put Nigeria housing deficit at 17 million.

For instance, a plot of land bought in 2007 at N300,000 rose by 100 per cent in 2011 to N600,000 even though you do not spend any dime to bring it out for display or clean it or repair.

There are many business opportunities in Nigeria but real estate investment out competes them all.

Mrs Uju Okafor, a land agent in Amuwo, Odofin, told Daily Sun that to make money trading in land, you must be able to make a good public relation person. You must be able to relate to land owners and spread your tentacles to be able to relate with authorities that give titles to land. You must also be transparent.

For example, if you buy stocks from a broker, you may aim to get profits when that stock appreciates. You may also have the dividends announced by the company in mind. If you invest in bonds, the interest earnings from the bonds may be the aim with which you make the investment. But, in real estate investment, you get more number of advantages.

Mr. Gaius Abebe, noted that every investor wants his cash back as quick as possible and for that matter, real estate investment in Nigeria gives the quickest money guarantee. After investing your money, the first income you may get from making an investment in a property is the rental income. Some investors are lucky and get good locality like city centers, near universities which can be rented by colleges as hostels. Here your rental income will be quite substantial and the profits will be quicker.

You can also have good control over your cash flow if you invest in properties in Nigeria that fetch you rental incomes month after month. If you go through the statistics, rental incomes have always been much greater than the dividend incomes you get by investing in stocks. Of course, in stocks, if you are extremely lucky, a sudden surge in the value of your stocks may get you good returns if you sell the stocks at the most opportune time.


Abuja, Lagos, P/H, 5 others emerge Nigeria’s property hot spots 

SOME neighbourhoods have been listed as the most popular spots for house-hunters in Lagos, in a new ranking released recently. According to statistics released by Lamudi, land in these areas appreciate on a weekly bases such that a plot of land that cost N1 million today, may cost N1.34 million just after two weeks.

According to the report from Lamudi’s Q1 2015 research, these 10 neighbourhoods in Lagos dominate property searches in Nigeria’s most populous city, attracting 89 percent of all searches. Data shows Lekki region is the most popular area for house-hunters in Lagos, attracting 38.33 percent of all property searches in the city.

Breaking down the data into an easy-to-read infographic, Lamudi reveals that house-hunters are looking predominantly for properties to rent in Lekki (70 percent), with only 29 percent looking to buy. A mere one percent of searches were for land in the area.

The second most popular district is Ikeja, with 12.32 percent of house-hunters in Lagos searching for property in  this area. At the other end of the scale, the research highlights 10 areas in the city that generate less than one percent of all Lagos property searches combined.

Related News

Renting is dominating property searches in all the top 10 neighbourhoods in Lagos. In Yaba – the fourth most popular district for property seekers in Lagos – 93 percent of searches are for rental properties, with only four percent looking to buy.

In Shomolu, 94 percent of property searches are house-hunters who want to rent. Data shows the most popular of the top 10 neighbourhoods for purchasing property in Lagos is Ikoyi; 42 percent of searches in this area are carried out by house-hunters aiming to buy.

Obi Ejimofo, Managing Director of Lamudi Nigeria, said: “Lagos is at the forefront of Nigeria’s growing property market, as highlighted by such a high number of searches in this area. What’s interesting is examining the breakdown of searches for properties in this area, to examine where Nigerians are looking to settle down within the city.

Recently we have seen that the Nigerian  rental market has become much more active than the sales market. This trend is confirmed by our data for the first quarter of 2015, where searches for rentals are dominating.”

Also in Amuwo-Odofin, 2 Bedroom flat at Gabriel Bankole with three baths cost ₦850,000 per annum while Block with 2 units of 3 Bedroom at Apple Junction cost N150,000,000 with 4 baths and 20 living area(m2). In the same way, a block with 8 units of 3 bedrooms with 3 baths at Lakeview cost N15, 000,000 while newly built 3 bedroom flats in Green Field Estate with 4 baths cost N850,000 per annum.

There is a report that the FCT is one of the worlds emerging cities. “The Federal Capital Territory continues to attract real estate investors, interested in benefiting from its array of well-developed architecture and strong infrastructure.

Abuja boasts of good security and a favourable climate for business. The city’s Business Zone is home to an array of multinational companies expanding their offices into the emerging market.


Avoid headache of land grabbers: Make enquiries from right authorities 

THE Ogun State Government has advised residents to always channel their enquiries on land acquisition particularly as it relates to its validity to relevant agencies.

Special Adviser to the Governor on Housing Development and General Manager, Ogun State Housing Corporation, Jumoke Akinwunmi, while speaking on the achievements of the Corporation in the last 40 years in Abeokuta, said that the rate at which some unscrupulous members of the public encroach on government-owned land particularly that of the State Housing Corporation was worrisome, noting that the situation was hampering the smooth operation of the agency.

She said: “The issue of land encroachment by some people on land belonging to the corporation has remained a major challenge and for us to deliver our mandate on housing development and housing needs of the people. Such illegal act must be stopped.”

Akinwunmi said efforts are in top gear to continually re-establish government land boundaries, dialogue with Community Development Associations (CDAs) of the host communities to curb activities of land grabbers popularly called “Omo Onile” and set up a monitoring committee to regularly inspect the boundaries in order to curb unlawful encroachment on government land.


AFC launches Africa Project Developers Initiative 

AFRICA Finance Corporation (AFC) and its development partners, have announced the launch of the Africa Project Developers Initiative (APDI).

APDI is a think tank and network to promote and enable project development in Africa. It creates a platform that fosters continuous dialogue amongst members, standardises project development documentation, develops market benchmarks, enables knowledge transfer, and facilitates independent research and serves as a policy advocacy forum for the industry.

A significant bottleneck in unlocking Africa’s infrastructure is the development of viable projects that meet the viability and bankability tests of financiers. African project development itself is a proven asset class, with an increasing number of projects successfully reaching financial close: Azura, Nigeria; Cenpower, Ghana; Cabeolica, Cape Verde; Henry Konan Bedie Bridge, Cote D Ivoire.

The challenges experienced by developers require the establishment of an innovative and collective approach to addressing the issues. The average project development time span from concept to financial close is 7 years. If Africa is to make an impactful difference and meet its developmental aspirations, a think tank such as the Africa Project Development Initiative, is imperative for project developers.