During the week I have a
series of meetings with a client who lives abroad, but has been developing
heavily in Lagos with a partner who is based here. They are concerned about the
downward turn in the property market and want to reassess their options for
selling at quite a high asking price. I advice that they should consider
lowering prices to attract a wider market and be prepared to wait a little
longer for the property to be let or sold. Of course with the proliferation of Estate
Agents who are desperate for a sale or lease and in a market where fewer
properties are becoming available, it will determine who the most tenacious
are. On the positive side It will hopefully leave only the really serious
property experts to take charge of the market.
I had to carry out some
land viewings in Epe over the weekend. Development is moving much further away towards
Epe, and looks promising with the proposed opening of the Lekki Expressway
corridor. New estates are springing up everywhere. The traffic congestion on
the Lekki Expressway road especially from Chevron to Sangotedo and back in the
opposite direction is horrific to witness in the mornings and evening. LCC must
do something about this misery to road users. Toll gate charges are collected
from users who are not receiving any real benefits from using the road.
Meetings have to be planned and set out for hours in advance. The works to the
roads were projected to have been completed ages ago, but no updated
information is being given. The roundabouts cause chaos, accidents and gridlock
daily. I am not sure how this already overstretched road will cope with the
future projection of millions more residents who will move into the new estates
springing up.
I am invited to Ogun
state to view another development coming up, which is aiming to target the high
end market. I feel this may be better targeted at the medium income investors
and workers who will want somewhere decent to stay and who work in the
locality. The chances of this group of investors buying and renting there, is
much higher than the target group the investors are looking at who are high
income earners, and will not want to spend the kind on money being asked for,
to live in that area. I will give it a
shot at marketing in Lagos, but have advised the developers what to expect. I
leave Abeokuta at 5pm, and am still in Otta at 7pm. I got to Lagos at 10pm!
I really need to get
myself a driver instead of borrowing friend’s drivers, but am still wary about
their trustworthiness. With the increase
in kidnapping incidents we must be extra wary. I am therefore more comfortable
driving myself most times even though it is getting more and more stressful.
I have lunch with a good
client who is refurbishing a block of flats in Ikoyi and wants to know what the
market rate is for flats in the area. He of course pays for lunch. The best way
to get an idea of this is to check the already going rate for similar
properties in the area. This can be difficult atimes as some landlords ask for
ridiculously high amounts based on what they feel they have put into the
property. I ring around for contractor’s quotes for the management of the
facilities. I get quotes with such wide variances, the most expensive at N3mill
more than the lowest quote even though they are quoting for exactly the same
things. It is a hard to know what to
think!
No comments:
Post a Comment