FG LAUNCHES HOUSING PORTAL, SAYS NIGERIANS CAN NOW ACCESS AFFORDABLE HOMES

The Federal Government under the National Housing Programme yesterday launched an online application portal for nigerians to access affordable homes.

The Minister of Works and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola during the official inauguration of the portal in Abuja disclosed that the housing initiative is designed to ease the challenges faced by citizens in securing decent and affordable accommodation.

According to the minister, more than 5,000 housing units of different types and sizes are currently under construction, urging every nigerian to apply via the ministry's official website.

"We currently have over 5,000 units at different stages of completion. The houses range from one, two and three semi-detached bungalows and one to three-bedroom flats.

“The least selling price for each of these houses will be N7.2m and the highest will be N16.19m. The highest is a three-bedroom bungalow, it is not just the house but it also has land along with it. The bungalows are a little more expensive than the blocks of flats which do not have additional land.

“There are some slight price differences in the blocks of flats built in the riverine and swampy areas, for example, houses in Edo, Bayelsa.”

The minister added that the housing project which is being carried out in phases with the first and second phases already at different stages of completion across 34 states of the federation and the FCT will for the first time give equal affordable home access to all the strata of the nigerian populace.

The minister further noted that the Federal Government still awaits Lagos State to provide land for the scheme while Rivers State is billed to join in the third phase of the programme.

“This is the first time we have a platform that every Nigerian has access to. This provides an opportunity for all Nigerians to apply and ensure a fair process of allocation.

“We will soon start the official handover and tape cutting as the subscribers come in. We have maintenance and facilities managers in all the estates", Fashola stated.