Rullion's Blog

On one of the most exclusive streets in Nigeria's capital sits a crumbling mansion with an unwelcoming message painted at its entrance: "BEWARE! THIS HOUSE IS NOT FOR SALE". The warning refers to a popular property scam. In the most elaborate version, robbers break into your house while you are away, change the locks, and then produce multiple copies of fake title deeds. Posing as estate agents, they show buyers around your house and sell as many copies of the deeds as possible. When you get back, your house belongs to six people. This sort of deception epitomizes the tricky nature of Nigeria's real estate  business , but despite the risks, there are huge returns to be had in a market where around 16 million homes are needed just to meet current demand. Navigating through opaque land laws, corruption, a lack of development expertise and financing, a dearth of mortgages and high building costs will take courage and influential local partners. "There are

From the stroke of midnight on January 1st, 2014, Nigerians should be able to access more affordable mortgages according to Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the Minister of Finance and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy. The Minister’s New Year present to Nigerians is based on the expected launch of an Institution known as Mortgage Refinancing Company (MRC) next month.  The primary aim of MRC is to support mortgage originators such as the Mortgage Banks and the regular banks to increase mortgage lending by refinancing their mortgage loan portfolios.

I met Dayo in my second year in Unilag, he was studying Biology while I studied Mass Communication. Dayo was a legend in school. He smashed all his exams without stress. We became friends when he was running for the President of the Student Union. Five years later, we are still good buddies. Dayo was a detailed fellow and a good judge of character, so when he told me something or someone was  sure,  I naturally believed him. After school Dayo became a well-known estate agent, so when I needed a place to stay, I informed Dayo, who informed me his uncle had an empty apartment in Lekki, which was close to my new office and was also affordable. I paid for the apartment without going to inspect it. That was how much I trusted Dayo. Two weeks after, I paid for the apartment; I was ready to move in when Dayo called to inform me that his uncle had rent out the apartment to someone else. I was shocked, where was my money? It was with his uncle. When will I get my money back? He was not

The foundational principle of real estate investment is that it is an appreciating asset. The common belief is that real estate value always goes up. This is true, but it is not the whole truth. Like all other investment vehicles, real estate has its potential downside. It can actually diminish in value, plateau in value or lose value outright. Although this is not a common trend, an astute investor will look at the pros and cons of every investment he or she is involved in. Looking at it another way, a piece of real estate could be compared to a piece of cloth that you bought at an expensive price but which is no longer in fashion. By virtue of the shifting trends in fashion, it is still a piece of clothing but not actually the same in value. The various properties in the market are not the same in value and their location coupled with other factors will definitely determine their long term value to an investor. It is also easy to spot the manifestation of an area that has de