Nigeria needs 700,000 houses annually to tackle 28m deficit – Mortgage bank chair

Chairman of Gateway Mortgage Bank Limited, Evang. Samuel Durojaiye, the Commissioner for Finance and Chief Economic Adviser to Ogun State government, Dapo Okubadejo and others during the 9th AGM of the mortgage bank in Abeokuta

The Chairman of Gateway Mortgage Bank Limited, Samuel Durojaiye, has said Nigeria must deliver at least 700,000 housing units annually over the next 10 years to make meaningful progress towards closing its estimated 28 million-unit housing deficit.

Durojaiye, who spoke at the bank’s ninth Annual General Meeting held in Abeokuta, Ogun State, on Friday, identified sustained investment in housing development and affordable mortgage financing as critical to addressing the country’s housing challenge.

He said the scale of the deficit required a coordinated response involving the government, mortgage institutions, private investors and other stakeholders in the housing value chain, stressing that expanding access to affordable financing would be essential to translating housing policies into actual homes for Nigerians.

According to him, the Federal Government has introduced intervention financing schemes aimed at encouraging investment in the sector and making mortgages more accessible through single-digit interest rates.

Presenting his report to shareholders on the bank’s performance for the financial year ended December 31, 2025, Durojaiye said, “Government estimates of the country’s housing deficit during the year stood at 28 million housing units. To cover this deficit, there is need to build 700,000 housing units annually.

“To encourage investment in the sector, the Federal Government floated intervention funds to extend mortgages at single-digit interest rates through the Ministry of Finance Real Estate Investment Fund (MREIF) and the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria’s National Housing Fund mortgage loan at six per cent per annum.

“These initiatives are important to expanding access to housing finance, particularly for Nigerians who may otherwise find it difficult to access mortgage facilities under prevailing market conditions.”

He noted that the high interest rate environment had remained a major obstacle to mortgage lending and the creation of new mortgage assets, despite gradual improvements in some macroeconomic indicators.

Durojaiye said the bank had nevertheless navigated the difficult operating environment, recording growth in business volume and profitability.

He explained that the Nigerian economy in 2025 operated under the continued implementation of the Federal Government’s macroeconomic reforms, which resulted in a combination of declining inflation, relative exchange rate stability and persistently high lending rates.

According to him, while the decline in inflation and improved exchange rate stability offered some relief, the high cost of borrowing continued to constrain businesses, particularly operators in the mortgage financing sector.

Highlighting the Federal Government’s financing interventions, Durojaiye identified the MREIF as one of the major initiatives capable of stimulating housing demand and expanding access to mortgage facilities.

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He disclosed that the N1tn MREIF programme had recorded significant disbursements, with Gateway Mortgage Bank securing an approved facility of N2.2bn under the scheme.

According to him, the bank disbursed N809.9m to customers during the year under review.

Beyond access to affordable housing finance, Durojaiye identified the recapitalisation of primary mortgage banks as another major issue requiring urgent attention.

The chairman projected that the exercise could result in minimum capital requirements ranging from N10bn to N20bn for state mortgage banks and N20bn to N50bn for national mortgage banks.

He expressed concern that Gateway Mortgage Bank’s paid-up capital of N2.5bn could leave it significantly undercapitalised if the anticipated requirements were introduced.

He said the bank had increasingly relied on commercial borrowings over the preceding three years to support its lending activities, resulting in substantial interest obligations.

During the year under review, he said, the bank paid N202,612,903 in interest to funding partners on outstanding obligations.

Representing Governor Dapo Abiodun at the AGM, the Commissioner for Finance and Chief Economic Adviser to the state government, Dapo Okubadejo, said sustained investment in productive sectors remained fundamental to economic growth.

He noted that the state had positioned itself as Nigeria’s industrial capital and a preferred destination for investors.

Okubadejo explained that increased investment in manufacturing, infrastructure and other productive activities had expanded the state’s Gross Domestic Product, created employment opportunities, strengthened local value chains and improved government revenue.

He said the state had continued to attract manufacturing companies, adding that industries established in Ogun would stimulate local economies by sourcing raw materials and other production inputs from their immediate environments.