Samuel Amegayibor
THE ACTING Executive Director of the Ghana Real Estate Developers Association (GREDA), Sammy Amegayibor, has debunked claims that real estate houses are expensive in Ghana.
Reacting to the general report on the 2021 population and housing census on housing structures in Ghana, Mr. Amegayibor said that though the private sector is making effort towards supporting the housing sector in Ghana, the cost of local raw materials are expensive and does not allow the private sector to provide houses for low-income earners as expected.
He said “We can only do very little to address the housing challenges as a result of the high cost of raw materials in the construction sector. Private sector does not target the higher market but it is rather the environment we find ourselves in that has made things so. What we go through on a daily basis before we put up houses is not a joke. There are different factions competing for the same land so a land that will cost you GH₵5,000.00 will increase about three times. You go to the open market to borrow and on the cedi you are paying about 24%, you build the house you also have to provide basic infrastructure such as road, electricity, water. These are heavy costs to the developer, because you don’t get any assistance.”
The general report of the 2022 population and Housing census on housing structures indicated that 34.6% of households occupy rented dwelling units, urban 46.0%, and rural 17.1% urban with Greater Accra having the highest dwelling units of 47.6%
Commenting further, he said all businesses are aimed at making profit and so the real estate market provides houses dependent on what the market demands.
“Under the current circumstances, there is not much the state itself is doing and the private sector people are only supplying what the market wants and where they want it. The private developer is only responding to the demand unless there is a direct state intervention to build across the country based on what people require,” he added.
According to him, there are prime areas across the world, as pertains in Ghana where houses are constructed for those who are financially capable to buy except government deliberately makes an effort to support they will continue to thrive.
He stated “if the state realises that majority of the people are not getting accommodation, it calls for deliberate agenda to make it possible. Government cannot sit down and expect that businesses should run and solve your problem for you. What is the state itself doing to collaborate with the private sector? They have done nothing about it. Until our manufacturing base is built, to enable us to be able to provide what we need for our houses and rely heavily on local raw materials nothing can be done,” he opined.
BY Ebenezer K. Amponsah