PROPERTY NEWS

The 2010 edition of the International Housing Finance Workshop, an annual event that covers construction, banking products and other risk aspects in the financing of real estate and housing projects, has been slated to hold in Lagos between June 28 and 30, this year.

A statement by the organisers of the workshop, Pison Housing Company Limited, on Saturday, said the event, with the theme, "Investors Camp: Quick Wins To Housing Finance," would help experts and stakeholders in the housing sector to chart a new cause as the world began to recover from the effects of the global meltdown.

Now widely recognised as the leading source of networking opportunities for real estate and housing finance in Nigeria, IHFW attracts bankers, lawyers, risk managers, construction professionals, real estate developers, financiers, and government agencies, among others, according to the statement.

The statement, which quoted the Pison‘s President and Chief Executive Officer, Mr Roland Igbinoba, noted that in the past 18 months, house prices had fallen by at least 25 per cent from their peak, with mortgage finance drying up. Besides, the construction industry, which is the foundation of the property market, has been on hold, due to lack of demand and difficulty in financing conditions in the Nigerian real estate market.

It said, "The 2009 banking crisis, which later affected the capital market, evidenced the looming impasse in the market. Demand for real estate products in the prime markets has dwindled due to the liquidity squeeze while demand for houses in the social housing sector is crippled by the prevalence of unaffordable housing and housing finance.

"The global investor apathy from the global meltdown is gradually easing out and there is a need to reposition the Nigerian market for strategic alliances that will further strengthen the system. The IHFW 2010 is tagged Investors’ Camp, as it brings together investors, local and international, to fashion out housing solutions that will deliver immediate results."

According to the statement, speakers at the workshop will include: housing finance consultant, International Finance Corporation, Malaysia, Mr. Narayanasamy Kokularupan; Principal Financial Specialist and Global Sector, Global Financial Markets, International Finance Corporation, United States, Mr. Douglas Grayson; General Manager, Credit and Risk Management, Dewan Housing Corporation, India, Mr. Ramratthinam Seshadri; and Deputy CEO, Select Advisors Limited, South Africa, Mr. Sean O‘sullivan.