This was revealed by Mr. Taiwo Oyedele, chairman of the Presidential Fiscal Policy and Tax Reforms Committee, during the Building and Construction Industry Forum organised by the Council of Registered Builders of Nigeria and the Housing Development Advocacy Network in Abuja on Thursday.

Speaking on the theme “Nigeria’s Tax Reforms and the Building and Construction Industry: Implications and Opportunities,” Oyedele stated that the tax reform bill offers significant relief to the real estate and construction sectors, contrary to earlier misconceptions.

According to him, the bill is tailored to ease the financial burden on low-income earners by removing VAT from land, real estate sales, and rental payments.

Additionally, rents below ₦10 million per month will be exempt from stamp duties, while capital gains tax will not apply to the sale of residential properties.

“The Tax Reforms Bill will improve the affordability of housing. It will provide relief for people who are paying rent because what this bill is going to do is remove a lot of the tax burden.

“The essence is to improve life for everybody and improve the economic activities in the building and construction sectors, and by extension, the whole of the economy.”

Also speaking at the forum, Mr Ahmed Dangiwa, the minister of Housing and Urban Development,  represented by Temitope Gbemi, director of Public Building, said the ministry’s housing policies have been aligned with the reform agenda.

He noted that tax authorities are being urged to safeguard the interests of investors in the housing sector.

The Tax Reform Bill, originally submitted to the National Assembly by the Executive in October 2024, is designed to simplify Nigeria’s complex tax structure, improve compliance, and ensure sustainable revenue generation.

It is currently undergoing legislative review, with the National Assembly working to ensure it addresses key economic challenges.

According to Musa Dangiwa, minister of Housing and Urban Development, the programme offers one-bedroom apartments at varying prices depending on the funding model.  

Government-funded units under the Renewed Hope Estates Programme are priced between ₦8 million and ₦9 million, benefiting from budgetary provisions, free land, and subsidised infrastructure. 

Meanwhile, units constructed under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP)-driven Renewed Hope Cities initiative cost ₦22 million, as private developers bear the financial burden of land acquisition, infrastructure development, and high-interest loans.  

Dangiwa explained that the Renewed Hope Housing Programme uses a dual approach to meet the nation’s housing needs.

The Estates Programme targets low-income earners with affordable housing options, while the Cities initiative caters to middle- and high-income groups who can afford market-rate homes.  

Nigeria’s housing deficit, which requires the construction of 550,000 units annually for the next decade, makes PPPs indispensable. The Minister argued that budgetary allocations alone—currently capped at ₦50 billion annually—fall short of the ₦5.5 trillion required each year. 

He advocated for increasing the housing budget to at least ₦500 billion in the 2025 budget to expand housing projects across more states and scale up unit production.  

Since its inception, the housing programme has created over 252,800 jobs for skilled and unskilled workers nationwide. Construction efforts include 10,112 housing units in 14 locations, with many projects nearing completion. 

Workers such as masons, plumbers, and labourers earn up to ₦150,000 per month, contributing to local economic activity in project areas.  

Key projects include 250-unit estates in states like Yobe, Ebonyi, and Delta, as well as larger developments such as the 3,112-unit Renewed Hope City in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and 2,000-unit projects in Kano and Lagos.  

With urbanisation accelerating, the government has emphasised the urgency of sustainable urban development. By 2050, Nigeria’s urban population is expected to rise to 70%, creating additional pressure on housing and infrastructure. 

Currently, an estimated 59% of urban residents live in slums, underscoring the need for more affordable housing options.  

Dangiwa stressed that planning for Nigeria’s rapidly growing cities is essential to achieving a balance between economic, social, and environmental benefits for present and future generations.  

Governor Inuwa Yahaya of Gombe State commended the initiative, describing housing as necessary for national stability. He highlighted his administration’s delivery of over 1,000 housing units through partnerships with the North East Development Commission and other agencies. 

Added to this, Gombe State has launched urban planning initiatives to improve access to affordable, climate-resilient housing.  

President Bola Tinubu’s vision to construct 100,000 homes over the next three years is a commitment to reduce the housing deficit. 

According to a study by PwC, about 75 percent of the 42 million housing units we have in Nigeria, which is about 31.6 million of them were substandard.

Another report by World Bank estimates that Nigeria still has a housing deficit of about 17 million units which will require over $390 billion to fix.

Reacting to this situation, Yemi Osinbajo, Vice President  Monday, said access to affordable housing is a major subject that remains largely unaddressed in Nigeria.

He said Nigeria had problems of creating new homes and the problem of actually addressing the substandard nature of a significant number of the units across the country.

He said although attempts to provide suitable homes for Nigerians were being stepped up, getting access to money had remained a problem.

The Vice President who is still recuperating after surgery spoke through Femi Adewole, the Managing Director of Family Homes Funds at the Africa International Housing Show 2022 in Abuja. 

“Although there is no shortage of policies and programs that have been enacted by various governments to tackle this problem, effective implementation remains a persistent dilemma.

“Our housing challenge in Nigeria presents itself in two primary forms. We have the issue of inadequate housing supply to meet the needs of a rapidly growing population, most significantly for people on low income and young people.”

According to Osinbajo, a large proportion of Nigeria’s existing stock are substandard housing which do not meet widely accepted standards of habitability.

Osinbajo said the challenges continue to deepen with increasing social and income inequalities in the country and at extreme, many households are faced with the dilemma of survival between food and adequate shelter.

Further, Osinbajo said is not congruent with the country’s vision for a better Nigeria where even the weakest will have the dignity of decent homes.

“Over the last seven years, across different areas of government, a number of important initiatives which have the potential to enable us meet these challenges successfully going forward are being put in place.”

According to the Vice President, one of the initiatives instituted by the Federal Government to to bridge the housing deficit across the country is to support the Nigerian Mortgage Refinance Company and  access the capital market competitively to refinance mortgages.