Adewale Adebayo, a real estate developer, is the Chief Executive Officer, Tri -Edge Properties Limited. In this interview with Rukiyat Bakare, the entrepreneur speaks about the problems facing land subscribers, real estate businesses in Nigeria and what his company is doing differently to meet the yearning of Nigerians seeking affordable houses.
You have soared high in business, achieving much and building a legacy, can you tell us what inspired your journey into real estate?
My journey into real estate was inspired by my experiences in life. Coming into the beautiful city of Abuja, I realised the number one challenge most people go through is securing a decent accommodation. I have my own fair share. I afterwards made up my mind, that I will churn this pain into a fiery motivation to be one of the major players in the real estate business in Nigeria. So I will say my pain is my strongest motivation, and my quest for seeing people own their dream homes is my drive.
What can you say about ease of doing real estate business in Abuja?
It is a known fact that the Nigerian real estate sector remains unorganised and fragmented. Real estate sector is usually subjected to multiple taxes such as development levy, income tax, building plan approval levy, property tax and land use tax. Land administration process in Abuja is quite frustrating and this poses a major challenge in the real estate sector in Abuja. We therefore call for government’s intervention in making the process of property’s registration prompt and also create a sort of regulatory guide to stop land racketeering in the system.
What has been your biggest challenges and how did you manage it?
Every business has its challenging time. Our biggest challenge is the skyrocketing prices of materials for construction and development. The quotation you give today becomes invalid the next day because of hike in prices of materials. And most times, clients are not willing to stretch beyond a threshold. Another challenge is that, there are no formidable regulatory bodies to certify the inclusion into the real estate market. So we have a lot of people coming in with various dubious character, and this has dented the trust that the people should have in real estate’s players. Also, checks and balances should be deployed to checkmate activities of area boys who make land transaction deals a nightmare. It should be made a criminal offence to extort illegally from people.
What can you say about vacant houses littering major streets in Abuja? What are the solutions to this issue?
The high cost of rent is a major factor for housing deficit in Abuja. This has left many houses in the city unoccupied. The houses are priced beyond the reach of average residents. Meanwhile, these empty houses are built with fraud money and I think there is an ongoing investigation of completed but unoccupied houses in Abuja. Most of the buildings are been owned by politicians or Yahoo boys to launder their money. You can’t just erect a building and leave it empty like that. No returns on your investment and you are not bothered.
What would you say has given Tri -Edge over other real estate firms in Nigeria?
Well, I will say that consistency and relationships have been the major advantage we have enjoyed in TRI EDGE. The name of the company itself means a “trinity “bounded to give an edge an advantage. So when we understand the power of unifying all variables that makes for sustainable growth, the outcome is outstanding. As a real estate personnel, I never allow my last success deprive me of my next engagement. I never allow the applause get to me. I negotiate land deals like it is my first deal. I also intentionally value relationships. It will interest you that 80 per cent of our client were gotten through relationships. The poor man on the street can tomorrow be your next big client.
Tri Edge is a real estate consultancy firm with a special bias in giving people their dream home without stress, as their budget can enable. We also have made ourselves responsive to helping people secure inheritances in land acquisition and landed Investment. We are also a top crusader for for land banking project, where you can buy a land at an amount, not to build, but to hold up a good time, and then resell after a season. So we bring together the buyer and then the seller, in a coordinated and cordial atmosphere. We are also into development and civil construction.
What are your projections for the future and how best do you think, as a country, Nigeria can create a thriving environment for business?
Our projection for the future is that, we as a company want to make every civil servant in Nigeria before retirement have a decent accommodation, to validate their years of contributing value to the nation. Do you know that it’s pathetic that our civil servants are living in penury and reckless abandon? As a real estate person, am not entirely about making the money, I am interested in bringing comfort and joy to people’s faces. I really project to give decent accommodation to our working heroes. Now as a nation, we desire a partnership with the State and Federal Government, to give out lands to this people, alongside other benefits. By this way, it is easier for estate developers to get clearance and help these people make their dream come true. Nigeria is blessed with land but it is difficult to gain access to land, especially in Abuja.
What advice would you give to upcoming estate developers?
Please do not chase money. Chase value. Money will chase value. If all of your quest is to make money at all cost, you will end up defrauding people. And please it takes time to make a mark in this market. Don’t be in a hurry to make statements. Keep building, keep networking and someday you will be rewarded.
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