LASG, NMRC, others brainstorm on affordable houses

The Lagos state government in partnership with the Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company Plc (NMRC) and Mortgage Warehouse Funding Limited (MWFL), Tuesday, held a one-day workshop aimed at identifying innovative financing solutions in its quest to address the 3 million housing deficit in the state and Lagosians with affordable housing. The workshop themed “Building an end […]

The Lagos state government in partnership with the Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company Plc (NMRC) and Mortgage Warehouse Funding Limited (MWFL), Tuesday, held a one-day workshop aimed at identifying innovative financing solutions in its quest to address the 3 million housing deficit in the state and Lagosians with affordable housing.

The workshop themed “Building an end -to-end Ecosystem for Affordable Housing” was convened to engage conversations with an array of stakeholders that included chieftains from mortgage lending banks, pension fund administrators, National Pension Commission, mortgage brokers and Lagos State Housing Developers. 

The forum identified the constraints of construction and mortgage financing with guaranteed off-take as a major issue. 

Lagos State Commissioner for Housing, Prince Gbolahan Lawal in his address said  that  the State Ministry of Housing since its creation in 1999,  had directly made available about 30,000 housing units. He said that this is a drop in the ocean in view of rapid urbanization, population increase, and uncontrolled migration to Lagos.

Also speaking,  NMRC Managing Director/CEO, Professor Charles Inyangete said that  effective collaboration among all stakeholders is key towards for a sustainable  affordable housing scheme. He identified  cost reduction in  land acquisition/titling; reduced transaction time between construction and sales of completed houses; relative assurance for building quality and provision of adequate infrastructure and increased marketability of mortgage backed securities as solutions to housing availability. 

Professor Inyangete  said, “Maximum of 5 steps to register title; maximum time of 30 days for perfection of title; maximum perfection cost of 3 percent of property value; maximum of 6 months to foreclose on a property; maximum of 10 percent of property value in total costs and large-scale production of housing for N3 million and less.”