By Funmi Ogundare
The Co-Founder and Head, Business Development, Dukiya Investments, Mr. Lukman Shobowale has said the organisation wants to ensure that every Nigerian becomes a homeowner by addressing the housing deficit in the country.
Shobowale, who made this known recently, while speaking at the launch of its headquarters in Lagos, attributed the experience in the sales of properties to lack of trust by influential people in the country.
“World Bank affirmed that this year, there would be 21 million housing deficit in Nigeria which surmises that government and a few real estate firms cannot solve the problem completely, hence, the reason why Dukiya is coming into the space to solve the many problems of housing sector in the country.”
He said his organization, as an enterprise, understands that there is a gap in the market and is ready to contribute its quota to fill the gap.
Responding to questions on how much was needed to own a home, Shobowale affirmed that young persons, especially aspiring property investors, do not need to be millionaires or billionaires, adding that it simply involves starting with what one has, as Dukiya accepts payment in installment with keen interest on customer satisfaction.
He appealed to the government both at federal and state levels to pay close attention to mortgage scheme, saying that inflation and unemployment in the country are depriving people from owning homes.
In his remarks, the Co-founder and Head, Strategy and Growth, Mr. Bayo Lawal, said the organisation has been able to champion their targeted goal with excessive plans and implementation.
On the challenges faced before the establishment of the firm, Lawal explained that real estate business in Nigeria is faced with the problem of regulatory body that should help fizzle out fraudsters who parade themselves as agents.
He emphasised the problem of inflation, double taxation, bad roads, epileptic power supply, and land grabbers as factors that deter the development of an environment.
“We guarantee value for every of our clients’ money. Dukiya is willing to let people own their homes gradually with our uniqueness of value for money and timely delivery of properties. Real estate is the new oil, and we assure our clients of optimum service,” Lawal said.
