REDAN Urges Blended Finance to Unlock Nigeria’s Housing Potential
REDAN calls for blended finance to expand housing investment
The Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) has called for stronger blended financing structures to increase investment in Nigeria’s housing and infrastructure sectors, arguing that conventional financing alone cannot meet the country’s housing needs.
REDAN President Akintoye Adeoye made the call at the 2026 Africa Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) Conference and Exhibition in Lagos, organised jointly by REDAN and the Mortgage Banking Association of Nigeria.
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REDAN Calls for Wider Financing Options
Adeoye said Nigeria's housing and infrastructure requirements require greater participation from different sources of capital.
He called for stronger collaboration among government, property developers, mortgage institutions, commercial banks, development finance institutions and institutional investors.
According to him, the involvement of multiple financing sources could help reduce some of the risks associated with housing development and improve access to capital.
What Blended Finance Means for Housing
Blended finance combines different forms of capital, including public, private and development-oriented funding, within the same investment structure.
The approach can use public or concessional capital to absorb part of the risk associated with projects and encourage private investors to participate.
For housing development, this could potentially reduce the cost of capital available to developers and make some projects more financially viable.
Financing Remains a Major Housing Constraint
Access to affordable development finance remains one of the major challenges confronting Nigeria's housing sector.
Developers face high land acquisition costs, expensive building materials, infrastructure expenses and financing costs. These factors can increase the final price of homes and limit the number of projects that developers can deliver at prices affordable to lower- and middle-income households.
The financing challenge therefore affects both the supply of housing and the affordability of completed properties.
Private Capital Alone May Not Close the Gap
Adeoye argued that the scale of Nigeria's housing and infrastructure requirements cannot be addressed through conventional financing alone.
This places greater emphasis on financing models that can combine government support with private-sector capital.
Such arrangements could include concessional funding, guarantees, development finance and private investment, depending on the structure and objectives of individual housing projects.
Collaboration Across the Housing Value Chain
REDAN's proposal also highlights the need for greater coordination among institutions involved in housing finance and development.
Government can support projects through land, infrastructure, policy and targeted financial interventions, while private developers can contribute capital, construction expertise and project management.
Mortgage institutions and commercial banks can provide financing to eligible buyers, while development finance institutions and institutional investors can provide longer-term capital.
Affordability Remains the Key Test
Increasing the amount of capital available to the housing sector does not automatically make homes affordable.
The cost of land, construction materials, infrastructure and finance still determines the price at which developers can deliver housing.
For blended finance to have a meaningful impact on affordability, financing structures would need to reduce overall project costs sufficiently for developers to offer homes within the purchasing capacity of their target market.
This is particularly important given the gap between household incomes and property prices in major Nigerian cities.
Housing Investment Requires De-risking
Adeoye's call also places emphasis on reducing the risks associated with housing investment.
Investors may be more willing to commit long-term capital to housing projects where land ownership is clear, infrastructure is available, regulations are predictable and financing structures provide adequate protection against project risks.
Addressing these issues alongside financing could improve the bankability of housing projects.
Infrastructure Remains Part of the Financing Challenge
Housing development also depends on infrastructure such as roads, drainage, water and electricity.
Where developers must provide significant infrastructure themselves, these costs can substantially increase the price of individual housing units.
A financing model that combines housing investment with infrastructure support could therefore reduce some of the costs that currently make affordable housing difficult to deliver.
Outlook
REDAN's call for stronger blended finance highlights the need for alternative financing structures as Nigeria seeks to expand housing supply.
The approach could bring more public, private and development-oriented capital into the sector, but its impact will depend on how financing is structured and whether it ultimately reduces the cost of delivering and purchasing homes.
For Nigeria's housing market, the priority remains not only mobilising more capital but ensuring that the financing supports housing that households can afford.
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