Affordable housing is Nigeria's biggest real estate opportunity, REDAN leaders say
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Two REDAN leaders say Nigeria's housing deficit is the sector's clearest opportunity, while cost pressures, financing gaps and slow approvals remain the main obstacles.
Two voices from within the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN), one at national level and one at state level, have outlined where the country's property market offers its biggest opportunities and faces its toughest obstacles, drawing on separate recent engagements with the press.
For Adekunle Ibraheem, Chairman of REDAN's Osun State Chapter and CEO of Evermark Homes, the clearest opening is affordable housing. "The biggest opportunity in Nigeria's real estate market is the huge demand for affordable and well-planned housing," he said, pointing to the country's growing population and housing deficit. He sees particular promise in emerging cities, peri-urban areas, mixed-use developments, serviced plots and technology-driven real estate solutions, arguing that "the future belongs to developers who can combine affordability, infrastructure, and flexible payment plans."
REDAN National President Oba Akintoye Adeoye has struck a similar note nationally. In a July 2026 interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, he said Nigeria could close its housing deficit within a decade if the sector addressed land titling speed, infrastructure and mortgage affordability together, arguing that building approvals and Certificates of Occupancy should be processed within one to four weeks rather than on the prolonged timelines that currently discourage investment.
On the obstacles, Ibraheem cites macro pressures squeezing project economics: "The biggest obstacle is the rising cost of development, particularly due to inflation, exchange-rate volatility, high interest rates, and the increasing cost of building materials," adding that land documentation, approvals and inconsistent government policies compound the problem. Adeoye argues that long-term housing projects cannot be financed with short-term funds, calling for single-digit interest rates and extended repayment periods, and urging the sector to explore blended finance combining government, developer, mortgage-institution and development-finance capital.
Looking ahead, Ibraheem expects the market to become more structured, competitive and technology-driven, with buyers demanding transparency and proper documentation, and predicts the focus will shift "from simply selling properties to creating affordable, livable, and sustainable communities." Adeoye, addressing developers at the 2026 Africa ESG Conference in Lagos, has urged the sector to treat sustainable building practices as an investment in efficiency, resilience and long-term value rather than an added cost.