Municipal council invests €9.4 million to tackle “complex housing shortage”
Lagos Council has unanimously approved the purchase of two large plots of land for €9.4 million in a bid to build up to 600 new houses and expand its municipal housing options.
The goal is to address the “complex housing shortage in the municipality,” says the council.
The deal, which has been agreed upon with the investment fund that owns the plots, involves taking over two “rustic buildings” in Caliças, near the EN125 road after the roundabout that leads to Chinicato.
The plots have a “combined building capacity of around 80,000 square meters,” says the council, adding that the idea is to begin a “major housing construction programme” which seeks to “rebalance the local real estate market” and “create a diverse range of housing options”.
The council made a point to clarify that the houses will be sold to the general public but not through the country’s 1º Direito (First Right) programme, which aims to find homes for people who live in “undignified conditions” and cannot afford an adequate house. The local authority also said it intends to facilitate the development of affordable housing options offered by private developers and make part of the new houses available for youth housing programmes.
Local mayor Hugo Pereira says that the council’s approval “marks an important milestone in land policy, promoting the beginning of a new reality for housing issues in terms of supply and market regulation.”
The property acquisition process will now be put to the vote at the municipal assembly.
