Housing crash Lagos Nigeria - Real estate crash has hit the U.S. real estate market and other property markets around the world. Real estate investors watched helplessly as home values plummeted speedily and unbelievably before their very eyes.
In a matter of months, many had lost about 50 percent of the value of their investment to the unprecedented housing crash.
The period before a real estate crash is often preceded by a housing boom and steady, sometimes outrageous, increase in prices. This period is called a housing bubble.
Like a bubble absorbing air, the housing prices keep rising partly due to expert predictions of higher profit margins and potentials for long-term profitability in the foreseeable future.
People watch as their friends tell exciting stories of how they have earned huge sums from investing in real estate. As the stories gain popularity,
more and more people are enticed to invest. And so, there is a surge in real estate investors resulting in a higher demand and pressure on prices. So,
prices inch up again.
The housing crash that hit the United States of America in the last year did not affect property prices in Lagos Nigeria. The price of properties has
continued to rice unabated. And with the crash of the Nigerian stock exchange, many Nigerians who invested in the stock market and lost money have shifted from stocks to Nigeria real estate.
That mass shift from stock market investing to real estate investing has resulted in further property increases. This has led many to believe that a housing crash is imminent in Lagos Nigeria. Is that likely?
It's possible. But the chances are slim . . . at least in the next couple of years.
Why do I say that?
Well, the population of Lagos is constantly on the rise. More and more people are seeking for opportunities for business and employment in Lagos. The housing need is so great that many villages surrounding the former Lagos has been absorbed into Lagos.
Commercial activities and the hustle and bustle of city life has caught up with these surrounding villages of what was initially known as Lagos or Eko.
The mud houses that use to define these villages have all disappeared and have been replaced with modern apartment buildings.
The population growth and, hence, the housing need is so great that the neighbouring Ogun state is gradually being absorbed into Lagos in terms of level of commercial activity and the number of people who work in Lagos state but live in Ogun state because of issues of high cost of housing in Lagos Nigeria.
Consequently, the possibility of a major and noticeable real estate crash in Lagos Nigeria sounds unbelievable . . . at least for the next five to ten years.
As a Nigerian, one of the core things you wish to achieve in your lifetime is to build your own home.
The desire to own a home is so strong among Nigerians that its a powerful fuel that drives the housing market. Many low income earners working in Lagos live deep in Ogun state because land prices are low there and they so strongly desire to build and own a home.
That culture of one man to at least a house will continue to drive demand and sustain prices in Lagos Nigeria.