Gabriel Enenche —
Wealth Island Properties, a Lagos based real estate developing company has called on the federal and state governments to ensure more funds towards infrastructural development across the country that can help in mitigating the challenges faced by some real estate developers.
The Managing Director of the firm, Mr. Tade Cash made the plea during a ceremony marking the opening of a 150- units Parkland apartment consisting, two and three bedrooms in Isolo.
He said while most countries in the western world provide infrastructures before houses are built, the case is different when it comes to Nigeria, noting that in the country, houses are built before the government considers whether they would provide any infrastructure.
“The bridge that connects the housing estate costs about N40 million. It is challenging what people go through to provide a house, he said.
“The problem of infrastructure for developers is huge. If a developer creates the infrastructure that works, people are willing to come in and buy. It is expensive to do infrastructures; the cost of cement is about 200 per cent now.
“The first phase of this estate has 600 metres road; we have commissioned 200 metres of it and the rest’’, Cash said.
While observing that the majority of Lagos state could be categorized as urban-slum areas with most prime neighbourhoods like Victoria Island, Lekki and other parts of the state being a mixture of shanties and cities, he stressed that it has brought about a high deficit in infrastructures.
The urban-slum areas, he confirmed, pose a hideout for social miscreants and that defeats the overall goal of the government’s vision to build great cities and have a safe environment for residents.
“The government cannot make people rich but they can give them an enabling environment to create and own their wealth. Our commitment is to work hand in hand with the government to build houses that give people such an enabling environment that help them scale their prosperity.
“One of the major assets of real estate is mobility and that is what we have made possible, we shorten commuting time. With the bridge, you can easily access different parts of Lagos mainland. Parkland is an affordable apartment with prices starting from N18.9 million”, Cash concluded.
