By Giwa SHILE
A real estate manager, Mr Tunde Balogun, says complexities and absence of a flexible rent payment system makes affordable housing to become an illusion for many low and middle income earners in Nigeria.
Balogun, the Chief Executive Officer, Rentsmallsmall Ltd., Lagos, made this known at a media briefing on Monday in Lagos, saying that the issue had made vacancy rate in the residential and commercial markets to jump up.
He said that most buildings being touted as affordable were beyond the reach of an average Nigerian based on the present payment structure.
Balogun recalled that the Federal Housing Authority Mortgage Bank had recently disclosed that the Lagos property market was in a crisis.
This, according to the bank, was due to the default rate on rented properties, which had risen to 71 per cent and vacancy rate hits 74 per cent in prime property locations.
Balogun said that to address the property market crisis, his outfit “offers a flexible rent initiative for low and average income earners to make it possible for them to seamlessly find a new home within their budgets.
“Our model is a departure from the annual or two years rent payments being demanded by landlords, as it allows for monthly, quarterly and biannual rent payment.”
According to him, the platform ensures that property owners get screened and verified tenants, which guarantees that the tenants are eligible enough to pay future rents diligently.
He noted that the rising vacancy and rent default rates were reflection of the economic downturn, impacting on the citizen’s ability to meet their rental obligations.
Balogun said that the initiative would alleviate the concerns of many Nigerians as regards payment of rents and boost the growth of housing industry.
