According to the Managing Director of Nigeria Mortgage Refinancing Company (NMRC), Kehinde Ogundimu, more state governments in Nigeria are beginning to realize the need for localizing the model mortgage foreclosure law in their respective states.
Ogundimu who was speaking as one of the panelists in a recent webinar organized by the Housing Development Advocacy Network (HDAN) held on the 5th of May, with theme ’Family Homes Funds: Mitigating the Impact of Covid-19 with New Homes and Jobs for Low Income Earners,” said that NMRC came up with the model mortgage foreclosure law as a sign of their commitment to the advancement of housing ownership and making sure that finance is always available to both investors and the mortgagors in the sector.
He said he was impressed that at least two states have now passed the model mortgage foreclosure law, with more showing commitment to passing it.
‘’I got a letter from the Ekiti state government that the bill is going as soon as they resume. We have made significant progress with Kwara state where the bill has been drafted. We have also made significant progress in Edo state and so many other states. I think states are beginning to realize that they need to be mortgage friendly in order to attract the investment that is needed in this sector,’’ he said.
According to him, between now and the next three to four months, depending on how the Covid crisis pans out, we will see a lot of states signing the foreclosure law because every state has realized that one of the ways in which they can empower their people and unlock the capital tied down in assets is through the passage of this law.
‘’So I will say that we are making very good progress and everyone will see the results soon,’’ he assured.
The covid-19 pandemic according to him has resulted in a destruction that is broad, deep and pervasive in the entire value chain.
‘’Though it started as a health crises, it has quickly morphed into a credit market liquidity crisis. The depth and duration of this crisis will determine how quickly the housing market will bounce.
‘’So I am glad that the Federal Government, monetary and fiscal authorities are beginning to come up with some form of intervention. The scale of that intervention must be unparalleled in Nigeria so that we don’t end up having a U curve where we stay on that trajectory with no growth for so long. We want this crisis to be a V shape recovery,’’ he said.
Speaking further on home ownership in Nigeria, he said that for people to attract finance for that and make the home ownership very important, we have to realize that there must also be a secondary market in Nigeria for that.
‘’For us to have that secondary market, we need the Model Mortgage Foreclosure Law in all states. We have entered into partnership with Lagos and Kaduna on a tripartite agreement where we are doing some form of blended finance to create mortgages, and other States are beginning to move in the right direction.’’
Ogundimu said he is hopeful about the successes that will be recorded in the housing sector in the coming months and years, especially if the covid pandemic does not persist any further.
