Market Outlook of West African Real Estate Market
How about an oversight of how property market is in the west of Africa? Africa in general is experiencing a rapid growth of its property market but West Africa in particular is attracting a great number of international investors, developers and even occupies.
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With its rapid population growth, there came an increase in population of the wealthy and Middle class. Increased tourism and rapid relocation of businesses led to a push for the demand of hotels, malls and modern offices in the West of Africa.
Just like any other business in Africa, the real estate industry in West Africa has its own hurdles to overcome, one being uniform development and this has driven many developers and lenders to the Nigeria's capital that's Lagos, to Ghana and not forgetting to the East Africa's major trade zone, Nairobi.
Nigeria has a vast of natural resources and with its current development trend, many have their predictions for it to be the next South Africa. The major Eko Atlantic development located in Lagos gives a true measure with clear indication of the scale of development ongoing in that place. There is also an increase in Nigerian's middle class population that comes also with an increase in overseas travelers that has led to the rise in the number of hotels and luxurious accomodations in this zone. Challenges facing Nigerian real estate industry are things like;
- Lack of transparency
- Political and currency risk
- Difficulty in obtaining permit approval
- Cost control
These challenges may also cut across the real estate industry in general.
Despite the fact that only a few of the West African countries have mortgage banks these countries are undergoing decentralization and democratization and many of its cities emerged from rural areas with major modernization occuring to their capital cities.
Another factor that makes foreign investment a great deal in the West African countries is their affordability ratio. This is a major challenge depending on the economic environment where you would like to invest in.
