Why We Cannot Provide Low Cost Houses in Lagos – Fashola

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October 3, 2014 – The Lagos State Government has explained that it is practically impossible to provide low cost houses for residents of the state.

Lagos State Governor Mr. Babatunde Fashola who was speaking at a two day conference on “Igniting the F.I.R.E, Where lies the Key?, organized by Real Estate Unite said what he is comfortable with is affordable housing since there are no low cost input hence there cannot be low cost output.

“There are no low cost building inputs in Nigeria such as cement and iron rods and even bankers and manufacturers of building materials would testify that there are no low cost funds and no low cost roofing sheets”, he argued, adding, “whether it is private or public housing, I have had debates about low cost housing and I have told people that I don’t know where the output can be low cost when the input is not low cost. It doesn’t match unless you can give
me low cost input before we can begin to talk about low cost output”, he said.

The governor explained that it is inconceivable for people to begin to toy with the idea of walking into a store to buy a house like off the shelf, pay cash and go home adding that something is wrong with such a concept.

Speaking on education as part of the F.I.R.E. which is an acronym for Finance, Infrastructure, Red-tapism and Education, the governor said issues relating to the acronym are serious and for self and public education about which everyone must agree. He said that until that end is cleaned up, it would remain difficult for people to understand and embrace mortgage home ownership system.

Fashola said there is no economy anywhere in the world where all the citizens own houses, stressing that the understanding is very vital in order to disabuse the minds of people about low cost housing which he said is wrong since there can be no low cost output when input is not low cost.

On issues of rent demanded in advance by landlords, the governor said that requesting prospective tenants to pay two-year rent in advance in an economy where salaries are paid in arear does not speak well of Nigeria.

“When people are asked to put forward two year rent in advance when they are getting monthly wages in arrears something is wrong. And if we are also comfortable with it there is something wrong with us”, he said adding that what emanates from such a system is nothing but low quality of life pointing out that in societies where rents are paid on weekly or monthly basis in arrears, the quality of life is a lot better “because their economy is responding and the price indices mean what they say they are, so there is no gap”, he said.

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