…As FCT expands infrastructure
The Abuja Property Development Company (APDC) has been urged to lower the cost of housing in the Federal Capital Territory by addressing high land prices, expensive construction and limited access to affordable financing.
The call came at the company’s 20th anniversary symposium in Abuja, where stakeholders highlighted the need to ensure that new housing developments benefit ordinary residents and civil servants as road projects and other infrastructure extend into new districts.
FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, represented at the event by Abuja Investments Company Limited’s Group Managing Director, Ambassador Maureen Tamuno, called on APDC to make affordability a priority in its housing projects.
The push comes amid concerns that the cost of developing residential properties continues to put home ownership beyond the reach of many households, even as infrastructure creates opportunities for development in previously less accessible parts of the capital.
APDC’s Acting Managing Director, Akeem Kolawole Aderogba, said infrastructure accounts for an estimated 30 to 40 per cent of total development costs, making the provision of roads and other basic facilities a major consideration in determining house prices.
He advocated a model under which government provides land and essential infrastructure, allowing developers to concentrate resources on constructing homes and potentially reducing the final cost to buyers.
Aderogba also disclosed that more than 800 families had moved into the company’s 50-hectare estate in Kaba District. Its Kasana project is expected to accommodate at least 200 families, while the Idogwari development is planned to provide about 150 homes.
The company is also working with mortgage institutions, including the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria through the National Housing Fund, to widen access to home financing, particularly for civil servants.
Emmanuel Abudele, APDC’s Head of Business Development and chairman of the anniversary planning committee, identified land affordability and borrowing costs as additional challenges facing developers.
He called for measures to make land more accessible and promote single-digit interest loans for housing development.
The discussions placed the cost of land, infrastructure and financing at the centre of efforts to expand access to housing in the FCT, with stakeholders advocating closer cooperation between government, developers and mortgage institutions.
