Some residents of Bauchi and Dutse in Jigawa have expressed concern over the poor condition of an estimated 5,000 vacant housing units in the states.
The houses were constructed under viable programmes
By Reporters
Some residents of Bauchi and Dutse in Jigawa have expressed concern over the poor condition of an estimated 5,000 vacant housing units in the states.
The houses were constructed under viable programmes initiated by the federal and state governments many years ago, to enable Nigerians as part of efforts geared towards addressing housing deficits in the country.
A check by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Bauchi, Dutse and Gombe showed that construction work of hundreds of houses have been completed while others were at various completion stages.
Some of the vacant houses had shown signs of decay due to non-allocation to deserving families to make them habitable.
The trend resulted to negative economic and societal problems, including wasted investment, job losses, increased crimes and disruption of urban planning.
A cross section of the residents, who spoke to NAN, decried the dilapidation of the housing units in spite of huge investments in the project.
In Bauchi high prices keep people at bay
For instance, the Bauchi State Government had implemented several housing projects, including the Unity Housing Estate, the Family Homes Funds Affordable Housing Project, and the Renewed Hope Estate.
The Unity Housing Estate, conceived in the last five years, is being implemented under a public private partnership arrangement between the state government and Terraquest Development Company Limited.
The project, sponsored by the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), involved the construction of 1,000 low cost housing units for civil servants.
NAN observed that the housing estate located on Jos Road in Bauchi metropolis has reached various stages of completion.
Also, the Family Homes Funds Affordable Housing Project is a social housing scheme initiated in 2020, aims to provide affordable housing for low and middle income earners; it involved the construction of 2,500 housing units.
The project which took off in 2020 is the largest of its kind in the state, designed to offer great opportunities for average Nigerians to own houses at affordable prices with options for long term and flexible mortgages.
Unconfirmed records showed that about 1,220 houses were completed in Dungal – Bauchi, Misau, and Azare while landscaping and infrastructure are being finalised.
In 2016, the Federal Government under the National Housing Programme (NHP) constructed hundreds of houses along Ningi – Airport Road in Bauchi metropolis.
The houses are available in one, two and three bedroom options, as well as semi-detached bungalows.
To further address the housing deficit, President Bola Tinubu’s administration has embarked on mass construction of houses under its Renewed Hope Estate, which was ongoing.
The government is constructing low-cost houses for the people of Bauchi State.
A visit to the locations by NAN showed that most of the completed houses were virtually vacant due to delays in the allocation to interested buyers.
Mr George Adams, a resident of Bauchi, decried the poor condition of the houses caused by prolonged abandonment.
He said the high cost of the houses prevented many people from participating in the programme to enable them to own decent houses.
“The prices of these properties are steep, with a single plot of land along Kano or Jos roads costing between N19 and N20 million,” Adams said.
Dr Adamu Gabarin, a lecturer in the Department of Building Engineering, Federal Polytechnic Bauchi, opined that houses built by governments and real estate developers were largely unoccupied in spite of the housing deficit in the country.
He attributed the trend to exorbitant prices of the houses occasioned by the high cost of building materials.
“The cost of building materials such as cement, steel and wood had increased significantly over the years, making it difficult for developers to build affordable houses,” he said.
Mr Ibrahim Sani, a member of the civil society organisation in Bauchi, said the process of acquiring land and securing titles was fraught with cumbersome processes, resulting in the hikes in prices and rent.
“The cost of labor in Nigeria is high, and this is reflected in the cost of building houses,” he said, adding that the price of basic amenities were high including roads, electricity and water supply provided at the housing units.
“Developers often provide the infrastructure which adds to the cost of building houses.”
Corroborating an earlier opinion, Dalyop Emma, an estate expert, stressed the need for a robust mortgage system to enhance access to housing finance to reduce financial burden of ownership.
“Without access to affordable housing finance, many Nigerians are forced to rent or live in substandard houses and conditions,” Emma said.
Vandals, rainstorm pose threats in Jigawa
In Jigawa, hundreds of houses inaugurated under the Federal Integrated Housing Scheme (FISH) of the Muhammadu Buhari administration remained vacant for many years.
Investigations revealed that the roofs to most of the houses were removed either by windstorm or vandals.
The housing units located at Three Star Residential area of Dutse, comprised 48 units of two bedroom semi-detached bungalows and 24 units of three bedroom semi-detached bungalows.
Also, some water vendors were seen at site fetching water for sale, while a herd of cattle trespassed into the estate.
Commenting, Dahiru Sulaiman, a retiree, attributed the situation to the high cost of the houses which made it difficult for interested buyers to access it.
“I don’t know the actual cost presently, even after the commissioning of the houses, civil servants were grumbling about the cost and the repayment plan,” he said.
While the houses in Bauchi and Dutse remained unoccupied, the case is different in Gombe state with over 50 per cent of the houses being untilised.
Mr Sunday Mark, Chief Resident Architect, Federal Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, Gombe Field Office, said that more than 50 per cent of the completed houses had been purchased and allocated to the owners.
Mark said the government completed work on 194 houses under Phases 1, 2 & 3 of the project, adding that another 10 blocks of housing units were at completion stage.
“The completed houses are still on sale, buyers have started getting allocations and over 100 of the 194 houses have been bought,” he said, adding that work on another 250 housing units was ongoing under the Renewed Hope Estate initiative.
He said that the complained of exorbitant prices by the buyers was behind the poor sale of the houses three years after completion.
“The price of the completed houses, which a buyer is expected to pay the money in full include N9.288 million for one bedroom apartment.
“Others are two bedrooms for N12.398 million while the three bedrooms bungalow is N16.491 million,” he said. (NAN)