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It’s Called EMERALD Bay
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The Developer, Chief BABATUNDE GBADAMOSI, Reveals What To Expect
The management of Amen Estate has just launched a new estate called Emerald Bay. Emerald Bay would now be the second project of the Redbricks Homes International Limited, the developer of Amen Estate.
This real estate firm is highly competent in delivery of high standard housing project, using locally sourced materials for most of it construction. Emerald Bay was to fulfill the yarning of people, most especially those who can’t afford the luxury project of Amen Estate. Its package was designed to fit the pocked of both the low and middle class of Nigerians. At Emerald Bay, you are allowed to build and determine the structure of your house.
Last week, Chief Babatunde Gbadamosi disclosed this and lots more to City People .
Tell us about your new project.
Emerald Bay came as a result of clamour by the public who cannot afford the luxury of Amen Estate. And this gives people the opportunity to live in a structured environment, unlike Amen Estate.
Amen Estate is a premium product. But at Emerald Bay, people would be able to build to their own standard of finish. They can build on their own plan on a certain parameter that we provide. At Emerald Bay you don’t have to run for “Omo Onile” (land-grabbers). It’s a secured environment, and we provide infrastructure. So, it’s just for people to come and build. Emerald Bay is an exciting project. It’s a project for the middle-income perhaps low income earners who will like to build their own homes and get on the property ladder.
You are abreast of what is going in your estate. What does this hands on supervision take away from you interms at pressure?
It’s is a high pressure job. People have expectations and those expectations must be met. We wont be able to meet those expectations if we just leave the contractors to their own devices. So we have to monitor each and every stage of construction to the finishing stage. We have to monitor things closely to ensure that they meet our minimum required on standard, if not, we could be in trouble with the subscribers and deliver high quality products. Yes we have inculcated the culture of excellence among our contractors.
What is your view about real estate industry and how do you think some of the challenges you are faced with can be taken care of ?
There are two areas where I think the industry could be improved. The first one is in the area of Skilled workers.
There is a very serious lack of skills artisans. We are doing our big to that situation because we have a training programme, we have internship programme for our construction work, plumbing, tiling, electrical installations. That area needs to be looked at a little bit more.
The University, the Colleges of Technologies the Polytechnic, the vocation schools are not quite addressing the issues and their curriculum are not quite tailored to address to the needs of the industry.
So that needs to be looked into. I would strongly suggest for the colleges of Technologies and the vocational institute to look into it and give series of qualifications. It would be entirely worth it and I think its something a lot of developers would be quite happy to contribute to by a way of patronage.
Another area, is Finance. The CBN is Nigeria’s biggest problem in my opinion in this regard. Treasury bills are a big problem in the financial industry. They are the reason why the banks are not offering sensible mortgages. If treasury bills were not quite so profitable then the banks will by forced to look other ways to raise money and one of those would be mortgages. So, why give a mortgage at 60 percent on a treasury bills?
The Central Bank need to wake up to it responsibility and perhaps and the whole treasury bill regime. Maybe if government could come up with the more tighter and fiscal management system. Something similar to the one Okonjo Iweala was putting in place before their administration office.
Nigeria would have benefited more if this current administration had continue to use public sector fiscal reform. It would have cut a lot of wastes and with the waste being cut, there would have been more funds available to the CBN and the need for government lending would have reduced.
How did recession affect real estate business?
Every industry in Nigeria is affected by the recession. We are not badly affected but I see trends in the metropolitan Lagos.
We are fortunate because we are in the free Trade zone. The investment in the area add up to 120 billion us dollars.
Every where is affected, we are not particularly, badly hit.
Is it true that government can actually reflate the economy through real estate?
I disagree. I disagree to some extent. It’s possible to some extent but there need to be other production. There need to be other productions. There need to be exporting happening. We need to be trading and Nigeria is not trading. We have not traded properly since May 2015. Now until we start trading, until we start exporting products, possibly finished products. I don’t see how its possible for Nigeria to recover from this economic down turn to the previous level. We need to produce. Agriculture needs to go back to the Akinwunmi Adeshina reforms. If we are able to go back to that, then yes, Nigeria can recover. If Nigeria can go back to self industrialization that was going on. Yes, Nigeria can recover because the cost of environment is completely hostile.
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