The property market in Gombe State is arguably one of the fastest growing sectors in the Northeastern sub-region and yielding high Return on Investment (RoI).
The state was created about 26 years ago from the old Bauchi state and it has witnessed tremendous infrastructural growth, thereby boosting the property market.
Located in the centre of the North East, it shares boundaries with all the five other states that make up the sub-region; Adamawa to the south, Bauchi to the west, Borno to the east, Taraba to the south-west and Yobe to the north.
The strategic location of the state has also enhanced the growth of the property business attracting many people who migrated to the state, no thanks to the insurgency in the hitherto more affluent Borno and Adamawa states.
Therefore, in the last 13 years of Boko Haram insurgency, thousands of people have migrated from either Borno, Yobe and Adamawa states, the epicentre of the insurgency, to settle down permanently in Gombe.
These high influx of people from these states and beyond attracted investors, especially in the real estate sector, to meet high demand of residential and commercial properties for people trooping into the state.
Also, demands for lockup shops is becoming higher, with several high rise ‘plazas’ coming up almost on daily basis, to meet the ever-increasing high demand in the property market.
In the highbrow areas like the old and new GRA, Federal Low-cost and Shongo estate among others, prices of standard plot of land cost almost N100 million, depending on size and other specifications.
While in places like Southern Bypass, Tumfure, Dukku Road and even densely populated areas like Arawa, Kagarawal, Malam Inna, a 50/50 plot costs from N1million and above.
Residential rent of a self-contained bedroom starts from N100, 000 and above, while a mini two-bedroom apartment even in the low end locations at the outskirts of Gombe metropolis costs from N200, 000 and above.
A certified builder and operator in the Gombe property market, Abubakar Kawu Babayo, outlined some of the factors that are responsible for the boom in the property sector.
He said: “The conducive and peaceful atmosphere in the state; it is the most peaceful in the North East, the agrarian nature of the state, in addition to being the commercial nerve centre of the sub-region as well as friendly government policies attracted several estate developers to the state.
“Being a commercial nerve centre of the North East geo-political zone is another attraction for business-oriented people. The business opportunities therein encourage them to relocate there and settle permanently, and they need houses to stay and places to serve as base for their respective businesses.
“These factors create a huge demand for new residential and commercial properties, due to the high influx of people to Gombe, almost on daily basis. However, the property market requires huge capital, thus only few can afford to venture into the market.”
He explained that the downside of the booming market is that it is still less competitive, which in effect makes it to be expensive.
“The players used to hoard plots of land and decide how much to sell and always at exorbitant prices, mostly beyond the reach of common man,” he added.
Babayo, who owns a property company, RBT Universal Concept, added that the Boko Haram insurgency also brought a lot of people to the state, who have settled there permanently.
He said: “Most of these people that relocated are business owners and entrepreneurs, who after relocating set up several businesses; thereby employing several residents of the state and gives them means of livelihood.
“Shelter being one of the basic necessities of life and these people having money in their hands, they decided to build their personal houses to escape the bondage of paying rent.
“However, those that cannot afford to build their own houses, they have to rent houses to stay after their relocation, this factor further boosted the real estate sector because the demand for residential property is always increasing.”
According to Babayo, the financially buoyant residents of the state have taken the golden opportunity by massively building both residential and commercial properties for rent.
It was gathered that the market has attracted investors from outside the state to build property for sell or rent because of the fast and frequently appreciating prices of such property.
For instance, all the residential areas in the metropolis and the new layouts at the outskirt of the town are all accessible by good road networks.
Daily Trust observed that the digitalisation of land administration system embarked upon by the administration of Governor Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, through the Gombe Geographic Information System (GOGIS), has also played a key role in boosting the property market.
According to the government, the digitalised, just and efficient land administration system has guaranteed ownership and security of tenure, as well as reduced incessant disputes associated with land.
Governor Yahaya added that his administration has embraced the use of modern technology by awarding the contract for the aerial survey of the entire state using auto-photo technology in order to fast-track the issuance of digital certificates of occupancy as obtained in other states.
He said when completed, the project will upgrade the existing aerial photographs and geographical maps of the state by producing high resolution (GIS) imagery which will enable clear identification of property boundary for the ease of application and issuance of digital Certificate of Occupancy.
The governor also signed Executive Order 4 in 2020, which seeks to check uncontrolled alienation of communal lands, ensure provision of basic physical and organisational infrastructure and expand the radius of all existing urban areas, while creating new ones in all the local government areas of the state.
According to property experts, these reforms being executed by the state government have secured the market, thereby attracting property developers to the state.
The Director-General of GOGIS, Dr Kabiru Usman Hassan, explained that before the establishment of the agency, land administration in the state was in a mess.
He, however, said the take-off of GOGIS and other reforms in land administration have created a positive image of the state for investors in the property market.
“Gombe is now investors’ haven because now all land titles are digitalized. And all the files in the state’s ministry of land and survey have been captured and stored with the GOGIS data base.
“Now GOGIS issues digital certificate to land owners which in effect has solved the problem of cloning or multiple plot allocation which was obtained in the past,” he said.
