Many Nigerian families are grappling with severe financial strain as housing costs continue to soar, with rent now consuming as much as 70 per cent of their monthly income, a new report by the State of Lagos Housing Market, Volume 3, has stated.
It stated, “Wages remain stagnant while rents consume 50-70 per cent of income, increasing sharply, reducing affordability, and making home ownership unattainable. Speculators buy land to resell, pushing real users out and inflating prices. Even remote areas see high land prices due to anticipated development.
“Legalising land ownership is costly and complex. Most people can’t access mortgages, and down payment requirements are exclusionary. Developers focus on luxury housing due to better returns and a lack of incentives to build affordably. Providing developers with incentives to invest in affordable housing will boost supply
“Rent hikes are arbitrary and unregulated, worsening housing insecurity. The growth in informal settlements due to a lack of formal affordable options and the regulation of rent is unsettling. Affordable housing is far from jobs, leading to high commuting costs and long hours. Low-cost homes often lack basic services and infrastructure, compromising livability.”
According to the report, the interview responses from residents revealed a complex and interconnected web of challenges undermining access to affordable housing in Lagos.
“These findings demonstrate that the housing crisis is not the result of a single factor but rather the interaction of economic stagnation, structural market failures, regulatory weaknesses, and socio-spatial inequalities.
“One of the most striking themes is the gap between income and housing costs. Wage stagnation, juxtaposed with rising rents, leaves a growing number of residents priced out of both rental and ownership markets. Respondents highlighted that even in the outskirts of the city, rents are escalating beyond the means of low-and middle-income earners, with some households spending up to 70 per cent of their income on housing, a level of burden that far exceeds globally accepted standards for affordability.
“Compounding this issue are barriers to construction, where inflation and skyrocketing material costs render new developments financially unfeasible, especially for small and medium-scale builders who traditionally cater to the middle class. The inability to complete or initiate affordable housing projects reduces the supply of livable units, reinforcing the price surge in the existing market.
“The land market dysfunction further exacerbates the problem. Speculation has driven up land prices even in remote areas, deterring genuine homebuilders. This behaviour inflates land values artificially and pushes ownership further out of reach for average citizens, creating a distorted market driven more by investment potential than shelter needs.”
The State of Lagos Housing Market – 3rd Edition, published by the Roland Igbinoba Real Foundation for Housing and Urban Development. The first and second editions were published in 2009 and 2016, respectively.
