LASG seeks private sector support on real estate fraud

Lagos State government has called on the private sector to collaborate with it to prevent proliferation of fraudulent activities in the real estate market.

The government said it has enacted laws and policies to guide the menace, but calling on stakeholders to assist in addressing the challenge.

Speaking at the 3rd Lagos Real Estate MarketPlace Conference and Exhibitions with the theme; ‘Lagos Real Estate Emerging Markets -Mitigating the Potential Risks”, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu said the theme was adopted to beam search light on the sector against the background on new strategies being deployed by fake practitioners to defraud unsuspecting clients.

The governor, who was represented by his Deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, explained that real estate market can be the floodgate of economic prosperity to the state and stakeholders when potential risks are minimum in the sector.

He maintained that government, through its regulatory agency, LASRERA, cannot do this alone considering the huge real estate transaction going on in different parts of the state, hence the need for joint monitoring of this sector to curb quackery and unlicensed operators.

“This conference and exhibition was initiated as a platform for Individuals and organizations operating in the real estate sector to network and address developmental issues affecting the real estate business in Lagos State.

“As a government, we owe it a duty to safeguard investments of people who may be unaware of some unprofessional practices in the market. The need to restore public confidence to this sector led to the establishment of the Lagos State Real Estate transaction in Lagos State to protect the citizens and investors from the potential risks emerging in the market.

“The emerging trends and practices in this sector in recent time call for increased vigilance on the part of all genuine practitioners and the government in view of the rate of reported cases of dubious acts by some real estate agents who are taking undue advantage of the market which has become one of the fastest growing in Nigeria and Lagos State in particular as a result of increasing population.” he said

Special Adviser to the governor on Housing, Mrs Toke Benson-Awoyinka, who oversees LASRERA noted that the sector has been plagued with risks and losses which have been critical issues for stakeholders.

Benson-Awoyinka said that the quest for transparency on business transactions in the real estate markets necessitated the need for the involvement of government in the regulation of the sector.

She said Lagos State government is determined to ensure sanity is restored to the real estate environment with the review of the Agency’s law