Axial advocates single-digit interest rates on mortgages

A construction and private investment company, Axial Nigeria Limited, has called for the implementation of a long-term between 20 and 30 years mortgage system with a single-digit interest.

In a statement, the Managing Partner of Axial, Eyitope Ajayi, said the mortgage rate operated in the industry was unaffordable to many.

He said, “Long-term between 20 and 30 years mortgage system with affordable single digit interest. What operates in the industry now is off the reach of middle and low-income earners.

“Yet, the population of these classes of people is humongous. They need affordable housing more than the rich whose population is negligible. The nation’s credit system should encourage these sets of people to readily and willingly take up housing provision.

“The major problem of affordable housing in Nigeria stems from the availability of long-term amortised mortgages and not necessarily the cost of construction of housing.”

Speaking on the delivery of over 5,000 affordable housing projects in Lagos, Ekiti, Osun, and Ogun States by the firm, Ajayi said the projects were delivered under a partnership arrangement of build, operate, and transfer with Nigerian universities in the states.

He stated that the over 5,000 unit houses completed served as the company’s proof of concept and capacity to deliver developments that have a direct bearing on human lives and the sector.

According to Ajayi, these projects became a reality due to the vision, strong leadership, and doggedness of his mentor and Axial’s founder, Oladipupo Ajayi, who is the president of the Architects Registration Council of Nigeria, and chairman of Axial’s student housing initiative.

The Axial boss said less than 20 per cent of Nigerian students in the various nation’s citadel of learning were housed on their campus.

He said, “90 per cent of the students in Nigerian universities live off campus simply because of lack of on-campus accommodation, with especially young girls straight out of high school to college exposed to negative elements outside the campus walls.

“In the last few years, our capital growth in student housing development has recorded significantly from N750m we started with now to over N10bn without default in payment of annual rentals to our investors and financiers.”