The Branch Manager of the Gtext Homes, a real estate firm, Mr Farouq Usman, has disclosed that more investments in the sector will reduce the high cost of houses as well as make houses available.
To this end, he advised the federal and state governments to prioritise investment in the real estate sector to tackle the housing deficit in the country.
Usman, who spoke with journalists in Abuja recently said one of the major ways to tackle the challenges of housing deficit in the country, especially in the FCT was through investment by the government in the real estate sector.
According to him, if the government invests in real estates as it does in agriculture and other sectors, it will get its return on investment faster and use its dividends to invest in other sectors.
“Real estate is an assured way for rapid and sustainable growth and development in any government. The government needs to begin to see real estate as the future of any government, because it is the number one assured and guaranteed way to make huge Returns on Investment (ROI) within a short period of time.
“Also, investing in real estate through empowerment of housing developers and contractors will reduce the cost of purchasing or procuring houses, and also make houses available and affordable.
“There are so many private individuals and investors who are available to develop houses because they have the capacity to do so, all they need is government support. Government support in terms of making lands available for development and not just any type of land, but lands that are located in a safe and serene environment.
“Government should also make large expanses of land available, which will allow the development and construction of world standard facilities. This is because; developers need a large mass or expanse of land that can accommodate the desired facilities of the developers, where certain features will be included in the design and constructions.
“Facilities such as social, religious and recreational centres, natural gardens, schools and neighbourhood libraries and health facilities and many more.
“If the government makes this type of support available, housing deficits will be a thing of the past and Nigerians will begin to see, have, buy and live in their dream houses, especially here in the nation’s capital,’’ he said.
