The Lagos State Government has given assurances to financial institutions, including banks, that there will be returns on their investments in mortgages as a result of the proposed amendment of the Lagos State Mortgage and Property Law.
The proposed Mortgage and Property Law is to help create an accessible and affordable mortgage for the benefit of Lagosians to purchase their own homes.
This disclosure was made by the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Housing, Mrs Toke Benson-Awoyinka, at Wheatbaker Hotel in Ikoyi, Lagos, during a roundtable discussion on the incorporation of Foreclosure Law into the Lagos State Mortgage and Property Law.
She said that the roundtable discussion was not only initiated to safeguard the development of the real estate sector in the State, but also to ensure professionalism and global best practice, stressing that the proposed Mortgage and Property Law sought to encourage growth in Real Estate and regulate consumer loans for property realisation in the State.
What the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor is saying
Benson-Awoyinka in her statement said, “The proposed Mortgage and Property Law seeks to create a conducive environment for an accessible and affordable mortgage for the benefit of people of the State to acquire their own homes by paying a certain percentage of the cost of the unit and paying the balance over a period of years whilst residing in the property.
The proposed amendment Bill, when signed into Law, will include sale by public auction, voluntary surrender of mortgaged property in lieu of foreclosure, and foreclosure in default of payment of the mortgaged amount.”
Benson-Awoyinka said that the Lagos State Governor, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, was keen on developing the sector, through properly laid down regulations that would ensure local and international investors were attracted, and that the highest level of integrity was maintained in the real estate sector.
She informed that the Governor had consistently reaffirmed his commitment towards ensuring the provision of affordable and decent accommodation for the citizens of the State, and as such, the present administration had adopted a multi-dimensional approach to reducing the housing deficit to the barest minimum despite the prevailing economic downturn.
The Lagos State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr Moyosore Onigbanjo, while speaking at the event, said that once the law was passed, issues concerning mortgages in the State would be a thing of the past.
Onigbanjo said that with the law amendment, Lagos would be providing certainty in the law regarding sales of mortgaged property and foreclosure to give confidence to the mortgagee who has given out his money; in the event of default, he would be able to realise the security pledged without undue stress if it came to litigation.
He urged local and international investors in the real estate sector, as well as the financial institutions, to look out for the passage of the law, noting that once it was passed, the issues concerning mortgage equity redemption, foreclosure and sale of the mortgaged property, among others, would be more certain, more predictable, more investor-friendly and would protect the vulnerable.
In case you missed it
Nairmetrics reported a few days ago that the Lagos State Government had moved to safeguard investments in the real estate sector and ensure its development as they began the process of incorporating the foreclosure clause into the Lagos State Mortgage and Property Law.
This is seen as part of the measures and regulations that will help attract both local and foreign investors into the sector.
This is also part of the Governor Sanwo-Olu-led administration’s commitment to ensuring the highest level of integrity in the housing sector.
