Stakeholders Hail Tinubu Over Renewed Hope Housing Scheme

Stakeholders in the Nigerian housing and construction subsector have applauded President Bola Tinubu for unbundling housing delivery in Nigeria through the Renewed Hope Housing Scheme, saying the policy was in the right direction because it addresses the housing needs of the middle class.

They spoke yesterday at a joint press briefing for the signing of the real estate agency and marketing Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Qshelter Limited and M.I. Okoro and Associates in respect of the federal government of Nigeria Renewed Hope Housing Estates at Abuja, Kano and the 2004 Coastal Road, Estate, Lagos, organised by both firms in Lagos State.

In his speech, a prominent Nigerian Estate Surveyor & Valuer, Dr Meckson Innocent Okoro, said housing all over the world is a critical factor of production, adding that apart from being one of the basic needs of man from creation, in addition to food and clothing, both the living and dead need Housing.

He said, ‘’Even animals need shelter and food as they do not need clothing. We have been continuously amazed by the fact that all the different regimes of Nigerian governments have paid little or no attention to the critical issue of Housing in Nigeria.

The scarcity of Housing in Nigeria is not only embarrassing, but it is also a mockery of our Country when compared side by side with other developed countries of the world.

The question is, why did it take the Nigerian governments from our independence in 1960 up to two years ago before President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration to know that Nigerians deserve to own their Homes with the birth of the Renewed Hopes Housing Scheme?

“The present Renewed Hopes Housing policy of the federal government is a policy in the right direction because it addresses the housing needs of the middle class, and with the funding arrangement via Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), the Nigeria Housing Funds (NHF) Mortgage and Rent to own of six and seven percent respectively that guarantees ₦50 million per subscriber and a tenure of up to 30 years mortgage which is a decision in the right direction and highly commendable.”

Okoro said the most recent addition to Nigeria’s housing finance landscape is the Ministry of Finance Incorporated Real Estate Investment Fund (MREIF), under which N250 billion has been made available for disbursement to Nigerians seeking homeownership.

“The fund offers mortgage financing at a rate of 9.75%, with eligible individuals able to access up to N100 million per beneficiary

It is expected that within eight years of Mr President’s tenure in office, we are certain that a greater percentage of the Nigerian public would have purchased their own homes, thereby reducing the scarcity of housing in Nigeria.”

Also speaking, the chief operating officer of Qshelter Limited, Adegbenga Alamu, said the Renewed Hope Housing scheme remains a bold step towards addressing the country’s housing deficit, saying the main objective of QShelter Limited and MI Okoro partnership is to make the Renewed Hope Initiative Housing ownership seamless for the subscribers.