Mr. Festus Adebayo, a lawyer and Lead Promoter of African International Housing Show (AIHS), is the Executive Director, Housing Development Advocacy Network. In this interview with DAYO AYEYEMI, he expresses concerns about rising fraudulent practices in the real estate sector across Africa and the grave consequences. He advocates strong regulation and enforcement, digitalisation of land administration, promotion of transparency, and consumer education, among others as solutions. Excerpts:

Are you worried about real estate fraud across Nigeria and Africa in general?

Africa’s housing sector stands at a defining moment. Across the continent, governments, investors, developers, and financial institutions are increasingly recognising housing as not just a social necessity but a critical driver of economic growth, job creation, infrastructure development, and social stability.

Yet, amid the growing opportunities within Africa’s real estate and housing market, a dangerous threat continues to undermine public confidence, discourage investment, and weaken the credibility of the industry — real estate scams.

From fake land allocations and fraudulent property sales to uncompleted housing projects, forged documents, and dishonest developers, the rise in real estate fraud across many African countries is becoming one of the greatest obstacles to sustainable housing development.

What are the consequences of this?

The consequences are enormous and far-reaching. It leads to erosion of public trust. Housing thrives on trust. Real estate transactions often involve life savings, long-term investments, mortgages, pensions, and family wealth. Once citizens lose confidence in the system, they become reluctant to invest in housing opportunities.

Across Africa, thousands of people have reportedly fallen victim to fraudulent housing schemes, fake estate developments, and dubious land transactions. In many cases, individuals pay for land or housing units that either do not exist, are under legal disputes, or have been sold to multiple buyers simultaneously.

This growing mistrust is gradually damaging the reputation of the entire real estate ecosystem, including legitimate developers who are genuinely committed to delivering quality housing.

Discouraging local and foreign investment: No serious investor wants to operate in an environment where transparency, regulation, and legal protection are weak.

Real estate scams create uncertainty within the housing market and raise concerns among international investors, development finance institutions, mortgage institutions, and private equity firms looking to invest in Africa’s housing sector.

The fear of land disputes, title fraud, and dishonest project practices discourages long-term investment and limits the flow of capital into affordable housing projects.

This directly affects Africa’s ability to close its massive housing deficit, estimated to run into tens of millions of units across the continent.

Threat to affordable housing delivery

Affordable housing requires strong financing systems, trust-based partnerships, and confidence from homebuyers.

When fraudulent operators infiltrate the sector, they weaken the credibility of genuine affordable housing initiatives. Many low- and middle-income earners who become victims of scams often lose their lifetime savings and may never recover financially enough to attempt homeownership again.

As a result, the dream of affordable housing becomes increasingly difficult for ordinary Africans.

You talked about weak regulation and enforcement. How do you mean?

One of the major factors fueling real estate scams in Africa is weak regulation and poor enforcement of existing laws. In many countries: Land administration systems remain outdated; property documentation processes are poorly digitised; regulatory agencies lack adequate capacity; consumers have limited legal protection; court processes on land disputes are slow and expensive. These gaps create opportunities for fraudulent actors to exploit unsuspecting buyers and investors. Without stronger institutional reforms, the housing sector risks becoming increasingly vulnerable to criminal activities and unethical business practices.

What can you say about the rise of fake developers and unregulated agents?

Another growing concern is the increasing number of unregistered developers, fake agents, and unregulated property marketers operating across the continent. Social media has also made it easier for fraudulent operators to advertise fake estates, manipulated property images, and unrealistic housing offers targeted at desperate home seekers.

Many people are deceived by attractive online promotions without verifying ownership documents, approvals, or company credibility. This trend is becoming a serious reputational risk for Africa’s real estate industry.

What is the impact on Economic Growth?

Housing is one of the strongest economic multipliers globally. A functional housing sector stimulates construction activities, manufacturing, mortgage banking, infrastructure development, employment generation, and small business growth. However, widespread fraud weakens the sector’s ability to contribute meaningfully to national economies. When citizens lose confidence in housing investments, construction slows down, financial institutions become more cautious, and housing supply declines. The long-term economic consequences can be severe.

What must Africa do?

To protect the future of Africa’s housing sector, governments and industry stakeholders must take urgent action.

1. Strengthen Regulation and Enforcement: Governments must enforce stricter licensing systems for developers, agents, and real estate practitioners. Regulatory agencies must be empowered to investigate and prosecute fraudulent activities swiftly.

2. Digitise land administration: Modern digital land registration and title verification systems can significantly reduce fraud, multiple allocations, and document forgery.

Promote Transparency: Developers should adopt transparent project delivery systems, proper documentation, escrow arrangements, and regular project reporting to restore public confidence.

3. Consumer education: Citizens must be educated on the importance of conducting due diligence before purchasing land or property.

4. Industry self-regulation: Professional bodies and housing associations must actively expose fraudulent operators and uphold ethical standards within the industry.

5. Strengthen legal protection: Governments should establish faster dispute resolution mechanisms and stronger consumer protection laws for property buyers.

Africa cannot solve its housing crisis without trust, transparency, and accountability. The future of the continent’s housing sector depends not only on finance, infrastructure, and policy reforms, but also on the ability to build a credible and trustworthy real estate system that protects investors, homeowners, and ordinary citizens.

Real estate scams are no longer isolated criminal activities; they are a direct threat to housing delivery, economic growth, investment confidence, and the future of urban development in Africa.

If Africa must truly unlock the full potential of its housing sector, the fight against real estate fraud must become a continental priority. The time to act is now. (TRIBUNE)

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