FG, states push single-digit mortgage rates and 35-year repayment at Sokoto housing council

The Federal Government and state governments have called for mortgage interest rates to be cut to single digits and repayment periods extended to 35 years as part of efforts to make homeownership more affordable for Nigerians.

The call was made at the 15th meeting of the National Council on Land, Housing and Urban Development (NCLHUD), holding in Sokoto from October 12 to 16, 2026. Sokoto State Commissioner for Lands, Housing, Survey and Country Planning, Barrister Nasiru Aliyu Dantsoho, said the proposed reforms would make mortgage repayments more affordable, and advocated reducing rates from their current double-digit levels to single digits while extending mortgage tenors from 25 to 35 years.

Dantsoho flagged Nigeria's housing deficit, estimated at more than 14.5 million units, saying approximately 50.6 million people live in unsafe housing conditions. He called for the expansion of mortgage financing to Nigerians in the informal sector, particularly traders, farmers and the self-employed who are often excluded from existing housing finance policies, and urged financial institutions including the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) to provide adequate funding and flexible repayment arrangements that reflect different borrowers' income patterns.

The commissioner also called for the digitisation of land administration systems across the states to improve efficiency, promote transparency and ease access to land for housing development.

Earlier, the Director of Planning, Research and Statistics at the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Mukhtar Iliyasu Umar, said the council would deliberate in three stages, involving the consideration, harmonisation and adoption of policy recommendations. The Permanent Secretary of the Sokoto State Ministry of Lands and Housing, Engr. Ahmad Moyi Tambuwal, said the state was digitising land records to reduce the time needed to process Certificates of Occupancy and providing land for mass housing projects under the Federal Government's Renewed Hope Housing Programme. "The delivery of adequate and affordable housing requires more than the construction of houses. It also depends on efficient land administration, accessible mortgage finance, effective policies and stronger collaboration among government institutions and private-sector stakeholders," Tambuwal said.

The meeting, held under the theme "Strengthening Mortgage, Land and Institutional Systems for Accelerated and Inclusive Housing Delivery," brought together stakeholders from federal and state governments as well as professional and regulatory bodies in the built environment. A statement on the meeting was signed by Badamasi Haiba, Director of Press and Public Relations at the Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development.