The science of real estate , and new off shoots of cities, with the green tier markets, and urbanization gradually moving into the inner suburbs of the worlds Cities, coupled with high energy needs and the implication there off shoots, but with cities, coming into the fold, and the ability to syndicate projects that are immensely value additive, knowing that the best real estate in the world is totally eleciastic, not the Luxemburg, of this worlds neither is it the Parisian, cities, the Best real estate is in the figment of the , the best real estate of premium value is in Heaven
According to Onaloja, nation or private individuals, it is the utility to which a nation puts its land that makes its land to be classified as developed, developing or a third world country. It is this importance of land that has made it from time immemorial, the romans to put in the maxim “QIC QUID PLANTATOR SOLO SOLO CEDIT.
The country Nigeria, is indeed a blessed nation , our land which celebrates the sovereignty of our entity , uniting the Hausa’s, Yoruba’s, Itsekeri’s, Ijaws, amongst other notable tribes, to bear the insignia, “ Nigeria”, with a half-smile, the land my friends is what holds the country firm today , regardless of how the national cake is distributed which in most cases disenfranchises the poor and middle class , mis-use of our landed resources and its gross-mismanagement , is the principal reason for our economic backwardness and why we have consistently failed in our visions statement be it that of 2000, 2010 or 2020, in other to break into the list of emerging nations in which we have BRAZIL, RUSSIA, INDONESIA & CHINA (BRICS) , in other for us to have NIGERIA & OTHERS (NO) ,we must stimulate the fertility of the land , with the much needed infrastructure , to pilot the economy to the next facet of growth, all hands must be on deck, and we must start the change from bottom up and recreate the Nigeria of our dreams , I hereby bring you five tips that if taken by those in the corridors of power will launch the country on the pedestal of development and fast-track its development and enable it claim it ‘s title as “ THE GIANT OF AFRICA”.
5 KEY STEPS
1. TAPPING THE GOLDMINE OF OUR SOVEERIGN WEALTH FUND
2. THE LAND USE ACT SHOULD BE TAKEN OUT OF THE CONSTITUTION AND
3. A SOVERIGN CONFERENCE SHOULD BE CALLED FOR
4. FEDERALISM SHOULD BE ENCOURAGED BY ALL MEANS
5. Entrepreneurial virality of the youths should be stimulated to the highest capability
1. Your ability to defend your capital from erosive impact of inflation:
inflation is likened to a basket , gappen with holes, and you try and put in water, and what it just does is that it escapes, isnt it disappointing, every wise and prudent investor should try to protect his asset from the eroding effects of inflation he should endeavour to hedge his capital, nothing does this as much as land property, compared to the equities and bonds , the land is tangible and indestructible to a certain extent you can see it
10. A sense of appreciation, fulfilment and accomplishment as a human being :
nothing brings you joy and acceptance as finishing something as i finish this article much thanks to those who read me all through, its been though but i never relented , when you own your house a part of the earth is attached to you that bears your name, thats an unforgettable experience , your children would have a shelter over there heads and you are protected well in advance for the rainy day.
5. Society perceives you as a responsible and upright citizen:
ever looked out of your window in the morning and seeing mr johnson, dressed up neatly in his chaffuer driven car on the way to work, captivates the mind of people as he possesses an aura of respect, efficiency and diligence, and you definitely see the dedication to work, first to pay his bills, and ensures that his environment is well catered for, the lawns are mowed before they become overgrown, the Phcn bills are never overdue, and you would never see Phcn officials harass him for any thing, landuse charges are paid as at when due , doesnt this cut across an image of one who simply has his life in control and balance , thats the image of an ethical owner, its quite easy to elect him into a position of trust as he has preached by his actions and seldomly by his words and his life is an epitome of grace an inteligent example of what ownership does to the mindset of a man.
8.Fixed income earning ability tied to the land
holdings been fixed :
your land holdings are fixed , hence its not like you could one day carry your land from access point A to access point B , your rent earning capacity is tied to the land holdings been located in one fixed access point, so it simply behooves the investor to ensure that he employs qualitative means to protect his rent earning capacity. this further leads to notion that his holdings are catered for and could earn him his desires , which could be for profit if he where to be investing or for private purposes if he where to use the property for his general needs and welfare. fixity of land helps in delination of his land rights and marking of his territory to prevent land grabbers. and stem the tide of adverse speculation
5.. The ability to travel abroad as you are recognised as credit worthy
in most embassies today, certain criterias are given most especially in Nigeria , where a sect of people sometimes want to escape the wretchedness of poverty by all means,, having access to a landed property, shows your less desperate, and you have a tendency to obey the rules of the foriegn land, and in most cases you are going to pay your tax, furthermore should you default , your property is forfeited , its a viable security , so owning or having an access to landed property bolsters your chances of getting a visa.
6. The ability to leave a cash cow for your children should in case you depart:
the only debt everyone is to pay is death, it is payed by both the rich and poor , the bible says a good man leaves an inheritance to his children”s children , real estate serves as useful tool to ensure a secured inheritance for your children , should incase you depart, since it is a store of value , it ring fences your childrens future and if they have been raised well, they would know the value of such an asset , and further help to increase its value, it funds their education amongst other vital important things like food shleter and clothing
3. The divisible nature of land holdings, and capacity to fetch you various income streams if smartly diversified
In other to improve returns and reduce risk an investor seeks to spread his capital wisely across the best spectra of choices that offers him the highest returns, as an investor you have to look at your goals, and what your target is , are you aggressive or more retrospective, when you diversify your real estate holdings you are guaranteed different income streams at different times of the year and so in most cases you are never cash strapped .
4. Your capability to earn loans for other business endeavours:
Your real estate holdings serves as a viable tool to raise useful capital, needed for going into your private business ventures, although I don’t advise you betting on the house you live , if you must take a mortgage or a loan I strongly advise that you use a second home “ a little caution is better than a great regret”, when you take into consideration the bank lending rates in which we have an average of double digit figures , you have to take into consideration how you are going to repay the principal.
What is a home? , you might ask, what differentiates a home from a house, do you live in a home or house? , the Yoruba’s a tribe from Nigeria have a notion of saying “omo ita “ a child from outside, it sounds cold doesn’t it , considering the warmth of just even the thought of the word “home” , a home my friends is a culmination of structure, function and ambience, it’s a Childs first communication with the outside world , it’s his stepping stone, to the planet earth , be it as it may a home is where the heart is , the city of Lagos has been my home for the past 22 years of my young life, it has shaped my thinking pattern and modelled my world view in more ways than not , unlike many I feel fortunate and thankful , to have fallen into good soil, to have a shelter over my head and a damn good one for that matter, but as I grew older and my contact with the environment became more defined and as I grow in my quest to be an expert, I stumbled upon the understanding of what a home is and the benefits of owning one and I decided that I for one would own one, not just mine but I would develop large expanses for others as well, affordable ones for that matter. , better than the shanties you see below , my heart reeks any time I see this but as they say its “ culture” but come on!, this is the 21st century people should not be living this way , what differentiates a child born here from one in Victoria garden city Lagos the two words would be “OPPORTUNITY & ENLIGHTENMENT”, in this digital age we find ourselves
The city of Lagos although is a vibrant metropolis that still reeks from a
stymied housing market, our housing market is in shambles though outwardly it
might seem good , but a visit to theheart of the core , robs one of such naivety , so I ask myself what is thegreater good we all fight for? , what’s the Golden Fleece we struggle for? ,but still eludes us, see my friends, a home serves as a first point in contact
of a young child, a visit to any of our motor parks would show a high
population of youth restiveness, young men and women, sleep in the car parks,
with make shift sheds and shanties, so I ask myself, again does this greater
good exist? ”, what is my government doing do and if so do they CARE?, the consummatethinker in me fuels my entrepreneurial outlook to pursue this path hoping Ifind this treasure of goodness, some might call it THANKLESS, but I call it
PASSION, to see young children denied of the ambience I sometimes take for
granted, our motor parks littered with suspended glitters of an uncertain
future in an uncertain world, how on earth can we ensure a sustainable future?
seeing we have acres of diamonds but few with the skill to see such diamond lying in the rough, and even when wesee the will and resources to turn this potential into a gold mine like this
The will to change simply begins from man’s first step away from comfort, I bring you ten reasons why we should strive to own the domiciles that shelter our body, materials and secure our wellbeing.
1. The security of tenure and a safe abode from the hazards of life
2. The tendency of the value of your house to appreciate with time
3. The divisible nature of land holdings , and capacity to fetch you various income streams if smartly diversified
4. Your capability to earn loans for other business endeavours
5. The ability to travel abroad as you are recognised as credit worthy
6. The ability to leave a cash cow for your children should in case you depart
7. Society perceives you as a responsible and upright citizen
8. Fixed income earning ability tied to the land holdings been fixed
9. Your ability to defend your capital from erosive impact of inflation
10. A sense of appreciation, fulfilment and accomplishment as a human being
1. Security of tenure and a safe abode from the hazards of life:
“No man’s family can fully enjoy life unless they do have a plot of ground wherein children can play in the clean earth and where the wife may raise not only blossoms but good rich herbs to feed her family , to a man’s heart it brings gladness to eat the figs from his own trees and the grapes from his own vines , to own his own domicile and to have it a place where he is proud to care for, Putteth confidence in his heart and greater effort behind all his Endeavours therefore I do recommend that every man own the roof that shelter him and his family”
Life can be pretty harrowing and tough, but often times when we have a place to lay our head our principal need seems to be met, ever wondered why birds build “nests”, or badgers build burrow the ground to build “enclaves” it’s a law of nature and like the law of gravity it must be obeyed otherwise you find yourself in grievous harm, so a man’s house is his principal defence against the hazards of life, the greatest wars in history has been fuelled by the battle for landed resources which in most cases is land, from the battle of Leningrad, to the Israeli /Palestine land fracas, or the Zimbabwe scenario where white farmers where displaced , land has fuelled revolts often times from those who feel dis-engaged from the distribution of this abundant yet elusive natural resource.
Security simply means, PROTECTION, can we enjoy life without it, think about this, leaving in a house without a roof doesn’t it sound awkward? , such is our need for real estate since from the land we grow food, which gives energy and provides refreshing sustenance to the body, to enable it cope with the rigours of life, furthermore the primary needs of infants and children is safety, your productivity at work or efficiency could be enhanced if you know that after a hard days job you have a place to lay your head and your possessions are secured from theft, and even if natural disasters occur like they sometimes do a well-built house has the tendency to survive when compared to that which was built shabbily and owning a house should be one primary goal every man must set out to achieve.
2. The tendency of the value of your house to appreciate with time
As the renowned investment banker , John. Piermont Morgan says “WHEN THERE IS BLOOD ON THE STREETS BUY PROPERTY”, real estate follows the law of “arithmetic progression”, let me explain, a certain Mr John bought land for about 5000 pounds in 1967 in Ikoyi a prime area in Lagos state Nigeria (1000 acres) , from current estimates at that time and considering the fact that the Naira competed evenly with the pound, and at an exchange rate of say £1 to N 1.98 , applying a yield of say 13% owing to the nature and structure of such an investment decision let’s see how the value of this house has appreciated with time
Year
Yield (%)
Capital value(N)
1967
13
9900
1968
15
11,385
1970
45
16,508
1971
49
24,597
1972
50
36,896
1973
56
57,558
1975
54
88,639
1976
58
140,050
1977
59
221,279
1978
100
442,558
1979
109
924,946
1980
110
1,942,387
1981
112
2,175,473
1982
121
2,632,322
1983
120
3,158,787
1984
135
4,264,362
1985
145
6,183,325
1986
150
9,274,988
1987
200
18,549,975
1988
240
44,519,940
1989
250
111,299,852
1990
270
300,509,601
1991
230
691,117,208
1992
290
2,004,239,903
1993
60
3,206,783,845
1994
30
4,168,818,999
1995
35
5,627,905,649
1996
38
7,766,509,795
1997
40
10,873,113,711
1998
45
15,766,014,880
1999
100
31,532,029,760
2000
94
61,172,137,730
2001
120
134,578,703,000
LETS BE REAL HERE , THIS VALUES ARE FICTIOUS , BUT I GUESS YOU GET THE PICTURE I AM TRYING TO PAINT “ THE LAW OF APPRECIATION”
call it eko, call it Lagos, it’s a myriad of some sort a jungle of jungles, a city of make-believe like it or not its the fastest growing urban city in the subsaharan hemisphere with a market penetration of 3.5%, it’s a developers haven, a banker’s paradise, it boasts of the good, the bad and the ugly, it’s simply Eko for show.
the aim of this blog is to provide reasonable insights and analysis on the property market, emerging trends, bizarre occurrences, and expose its untapped potential blind and often ignored to the lay man , welcome to my blog
lagospropertymerchant 