Nigeria’s foremost mortgage underwriter, Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company (NMRC) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Modern Shelter Systems and Services Limited (Modern Shelter),a pioneer mortgage brokerage and real estate marketing firm to leverage their respective comparative advantages to address the removal of barriers to home ownership for offtakers.
The partnership agreement, which was executed on the January 25, 2018 will see NMRC and Modern Shelter working together towards the provision of housing finance, training, research, advisory and project structuring to increase housing stock that will drive mortgage creation and penetration in Nigeria, using alternative financing mechanisms that align with NMRC’s underwriting standards. The agreement is also expected to promote knowledge, technological transfer and support that grants Modern Shelter access to and use of NMRC’s flagship Housing Market System (HMS) as a means of mortgage prequalification and source of investment for construction finance.
According to NMRC’s Managing Director/CEO, Professor Charles Inyangete, in driving mortgage penetration and influencing housing stock development the company has invested substantial sums of money in providing and improving policy requirements and Information systems’ infrastructure that will assist market players like Modern Shelter and Brains and Hammers to make affordable housing delivery and access to finance scalable hurdles, as a result of the refinancing support that the agreement will provide through NMRC’s member lending financial institutions.
On his part, the Managing Partner of Modern Shelter Mr Abdulmalik Mahdi noted that Modern Shelter considers NMRC to be a major stakeholder and pillar in driving home ownership through mortgage refinancing in addition to innovative technology. He further stated that the partnership with NMRC would facilitate access to alternative finance investors and improve Modern Shelter’s ongoing engagement with Sterling Bank and Jaiz Bank using non-interest mortgage banking structures. He added that Modern Shelter has partnered and works closely with reputable developers such as Nigeria’s foremost housing developer Brains & Hammers Limited, Earthpoint Development Services and others to ensure availability of good and affordable housing stock for clients of different income brackets.
The Chairman of Modern Shelter, Mr. Adebola Sheidu who is also Chairman of Brains & Hammers, noted that the MoU and engagement would tie in with the proposed delivery of various projects by Brains & Hammers. The company is working to deliver over 5,000 housing units over a 5-year period across key states in Nigeria. These include, Brains & Hammers City Abuja, Jubilee Estate, Iganmu Lagos and a proposed housing spin – off of the landmark Kano Economic City project. He assured of Brains & Hammers capacity to deliver the housing stock needed to fuel this partnership.
The partnership has the huge potential of improving mortgage finance standards, particularly for the informal sector; it will also better enable NMRC’s member Banks to further create assets that will in turn drive refinance activities, add value and expected outcomes to first time home owners and attract non-interest investors into the housing and real estate sector.These barriers include but are not limited to issues such as equity contribution constraints, access to mortgage loans and delivery of qualitative and affordable housing.