Real estate, construction among top 10 contributors to GDP in Q2 2025

Nigeria’s real estate has been listed amonth the top 10 contributors to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the second quarter of 2025. Nigeria’s economy grew by 4.23 per cent year-on-year, which shows an advancement from 3.48 per cent in Q2 2024 and 3.13 per cent in Q1 2025, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. […]

Nigeria’s real estate has been listed amonth the top 10 contributors to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the second quarter of 2025.

Nigeria’s economy grew by 4.23 per cent year-on-year, which shows an advancement from 3.48 per cent in Q2 2024 and 3.13 per cent in Q1 2025, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.

The report released last week showed that 10 key sectors contributed majorly to Nigeria’s real GDP growth in the sector, one of which is the real estate se toe

The report showed that agriculture sector accounted for roughly 26.17 per cent of real GDP, while non-oil industries continued to dominate overall output in Q2 2025.

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Trade Contributed 18.28 per cent of real GDP, trade remained the single largest contributor in Q2 2025. The sector includes wholesale and retail.

Crop production also 17.80 per cent. Crop farming was the dominant sub-activity within agriculture and the second-largest contributor overall.

Real estate services also contributed to 12.80 per cent as the sector continues to make a large contribution to output.

Also Telecommunications and information services showed 11.18 per cent growth. The information and communications complex (telecoms, ICT) was a major non-oil engine.

Similarly, Livestock was 5.90 per cent as it was the next-largest agricultural contributor.

In the same vein, Crude petroleum & natural gas contributions was 4.05 per cent. The oil sector’s had a rebound which helped lift its share of real GDP.

In the same vein, Construction contributed.60 per cent. Construction contributed materially to Q2 activity, reflecting ongoing infrastructure and building work.

Additionally, Food, beverage & tobacco (manufacturing) — 2.87 per cent. However, manufacturing sub-sector remained an important staple of industrial output.

Also, Financial institutions — Banks and related financial services made the top-10 list, having contributed 2.84 per cent to the GDP.

Finally, Public administration  Government administration rounds out the top ten contributors with a 2.73 per cent input in Nigeria’s GDP in Q2.

 

Real estate sector after GDP rebasing

After the rebasing of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the NBS noted that the rationale behind that eas for accurate data capture and formalisation of housing activities

According to the NBS, Major reason why thr real estate sector overtook traditional and critical sectors like oil and gas, include a more accurate reflection of the sector’s contribution to the economy, estimation of property values, and increased formalisation in housing activities.

The NBS revealed that the rebasing exercise involved updating base years and incorporating new data, showing that real estate’s actual output was previously underestimated.

The Bureau noted that the exercise also revealed a shift in the country’s economy, with real estate now playing a more prominent role compared to sectors like oil and gas, which had previously held a dominant position, adding, “the exercise not only revealed the sector’s growth but also highlighted its potential for further expansion, especially with continued urbanization and a growing population.”

 

Formalisation of housing activities

The National Bureau of Statistics further explained that formalisation of housing activities, such as the registration of properties and the adoption of formal building practices, contributed to a clearer picture of the sector’s economic contribution

It further pointed out that there were more robust data collection methods, leading to accurate representation of real estate activities, including rentals, brokerage, and land valuation.

In monetary terms, real estate recorded a staggering jump of over N25 trillion between the old and rebased figures for 2023. The revised data shows that the sector’s contribution to GDP surged from N10.5 trillion in 2023 (pre-rebasing) to N30.7 trillion after the rebasing and further climbed to N41.3 trillion in 2024, positioning it just behind trade and crop production.

The NBS further explained that in nominal terms, real estate services grew by 46.52 percent in the Q3 of 2024, higher by 43.70 percent points than the growth rate reported for the same period in 2023 and lower when compared to the preceding quarter.

On a quarter-on-quarter, the sector growth rate was 16.15 percent. It contributed 5.43 percent to real GDP in Q3 of 2024, lower than the 5.58 percent recorded in the corresponding quarter of 2023.

Despite the declining purchasing power, there is a growing demand for Nigeria’s real estate.

Though there are conflicting figures regarding Nigeria’s housing deficit, several real estate experts estimate the gap at 28 million units, stating that the nation needs 700,000 new homes annually.

The real estate market is anticipated to achieve a value of $2.61 trillion by 2025, Statista says, showing that the sector has huge potential.

“Over the period of 2025-2029, the market is expected to exhibit a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 6.91 percent, resulting in a market volume of $3.41tn by 2029. When compared globally, the United States is projected to generate the highest value in the Real Estate market sector, amounting to $136.6tn in 2025.

“The real estate market in Nigeria is experiencing a surge in demand for luxury apartments in major cities.” it said

Daily Trust reports that key component of real estate include land, commercial and residential properties among others.

Regulation needed to boost real estate potentials – REDAN

Speaking on the issue, the immediate past President of the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) Aliyu Wammako noted that real estate have been seeing a boost in patronage, hence it’s improved contribution to GDP

He said “The sector is one that creates immediate direct jobs without any due process from labourers to engineers, to architects, painters among others and with the rise in demand, the contributions will be expected,”

He however lamented the inability of the President to assent to the Real Estate Regulation Bill which seeks to bring sanity and improve the sector’s contribution to Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

“After the passage of the Real Estate Regulation Bill in the 9th Assembly, it was presented to the current president on June 9th 2023 for assent but he declined unfortunately

“If he had signed that Bill, it would have been a game changer and brought more sanity into the sector because as it is now anybody can wake up tomorrow and say he is a Developer

“People are laundering money and putting it in real estate and that was what the Bill was targeted at; to bring sanity to the system. So therefore I believe real estate and construction will keep growing bigger but there is a need for the President to assent to that Regulation Bill” Wammako added.