The Nigerian Abroad: Building Your Dream Home Without Tears.
This post is dedicated to the Nigerians who want to build their dream home in Nigeria but are scared of getting defrauded simply because they trusted a family member or a close friend to handle the building projects.
Some have recommended buying an already-built house to avoid the issues in dealing with building material acquisition and labour. There are also cases where this strategy failed as people have also been defrauded having been shown pictures of properties belonging to someone else.
But what if the buildings you are looking at do not match your taste? In this era of building mass production, existing in luxury real estate, what if you desire your building to be distinct? One and Only? Be-spoke? No duplicates? A lot more unique building character?
You will need to first pay an Architect and get a floor plan that suits your taste developed. But how do you go about the construction? How do you handle your materials being stolen or exaggerated labour fees? You are abroad and can’t travel down to Nigeria to check the progress of your project.
I once worked with an Architect in 2021, whose brother was abroad then. He had acquired a property in the Diaspora Estate in Enugu. The Architect-brother did the building designs and was paid IN FULL by the Client-brother.
When the building construction began, the Architect-brother will video call the Client-brother, from the foundation to the floor deck to the block wall of the ground floor, and so on.
The Architect is not based in Enugu, he often flew in and lodged in a hotel for a few weeks while supervising significant works on the site. The Client pays for the flights and accommodation. He didn’t demand his brother to render the service to him as a favour because of family ties.
They are siblings but they also maintained an Architect-Client relationship towards the building project. It’s a slow process but they are progressing based on the funds the Client provides. They are currently working on the finishes for the building as I write.
The Architect kept proper documentation of every building material spent, and every labour employed, including his own fees as a Supervising Architect outside his base. Note that this supervising fee is different from when your site is within the Architect’s base.
As a Client, a Nigerian, based abroad, seeking to develop your own property in Nigeria, building your dream home without tears is possible. Should you choose to work directly with a professional or have a relative oversee the project, here are things to know.
1. Change your mindset towards paying for services.
This is the most observed reason that opens the door to getting defrauded by whoever is working for you. Learn to pay for services that were rendered to you immediately.
The person rendering the service may not have set out to defraud you (this DOES NOT mean we approve such in any way), but your attitude towards payment can make them start devising means of getting their payment through any “fraudulent” means, especially through material costs because that’s the costs you readily pay for.
2. Make thorough Planning and Budgeting.
As soon as you decide to build that dream house, start with planning and budgeting. Decide what you want to achieve with this project, take note of your financial constraints, and create how to deal with them.
Take note of the costs involved in your project, from design costs, construction costs, permits (both local and state), legal fees, and emergencies. You might not have the whole funds at once, but you need a plan of how to raise them with time. Seek professional help from your financial adviser.
3. Get acquainted with Technology.
This is your cheapest avenue for staying abreast with your home-building process. Some websites help with project management and remote monitoring systems. They may be expensive to initially invest in, but this will improve communication, ensure quality control, and project tracking.
4. Learn effective communication and choose a method of communication.
A consistent and open communication line between you, your Architect, Contractors, Engineers, and Suppliers saves a lot of time during construction. Keep everyone informed of the steps you are taking regarding your building to avoid creating any misunderstanding.
You can use phone calls or video calls, but written communication is preferable for proper documentation and future references.
Also, decide on the order of communication. Everyone should know whom they take direct orders from. You don’t want to tell Contractor to add something on site and the Architect counters it. That could create confusion and make you lose money and time.
5. Develop Transparent Contracts.
Maintain transparency in your desires. In drawing up a contract, ensure the contract contains all desires and interests, from the scope of work, expected project timelines, payment terms (method and timing), and how issues can be resolved.
You will need legal services to review and validate the contract, ensuring all involved parties are satisfied and aware of their rights and obligations.
6. Work with a professional.
This could be architects, contractors, and engineers. Research and verify their credentials, check their track records and seek recommendations from trusted sources to establish reliable partnerships.
An Architect-Contractor cares about his/her reputation and will readily provide all documentation regarding a project. This is not a waste of money as some see it. It saves you a lot of tears and you actually see your building and get to live in it. If there is need for a legal action, you can take that route and recover your money.
7. Create a Financial management system.
Have records of expenses, payments, the dates payments were made, to whom, and for what purpose. Get and document your invoices and receipts. This enhances accountability and reduces the risk of funds mismanagement.
8. Get an Estimated Bill of Quantities.
This is a paid service rendered by a Quantity Surveyor. Your Architect can link you to one. It’s an estimate of what it will take to construct your building. It gives you an idea of what your budgeting should include.
Note that the calculations are done with the prices of materials in the market at that time. If you got your bill of quantities say, 3 months ago, and you made room in your budgeting up to 10-20% of the estimated cost and now you are ready to build 6 months later, your bill has changed.
9. If you can, pay a visit to the groundbreaking of your building foundation.
You want to be sure of the property that is yours and see the foundation set out with the exact floor plans you have in your hand. But if you cannot, you can still use any available and live-recording technology to witness these things.
Make provisions for periodic visits as work on your building progresses. It also shows commitment on your part and reduces potential fraud and negligence.
10. Don’t send the total estimated project cost at once.
This can result in the mismanagement of funds or funds not being able to cover the costs of building materials when a stage starts due to the ever-changing market price.
Get a breakdown of all the stages involved in your building construction. Your Architect-Contractor should be able to give you this information and an estimated time frame when the funds are made available for the particular stage.
The Stages are usually Site hand-over/preparation, Foundation works, Ground-floor deck, block wall, lintel, floor beam, First-floor deck (up to as many storeys as you desire), then the Roofing, Finishes & Furnishings, and Project handover.
11. Get acquainted with the Material Costing schedule.
Before building materials are purchased/procured, a material cost is designed. This sheet usually consists of a breakdown of the number of bags of cement, rod, water, and the number of trips of sharp sand or plaster sand, or laterite needed for each stage of the construction, including labour costs.
In this list, provision is also made for any miscellaneous expenses on your building site. If an Architect-Contractor sends you this list, please look at it. understand it and if you do not, ask questions.
If your Architect-Contractor does not give you this list, as a way of keeping track of your project progress, you can request it.
12. Create Quality Control measures.
You can get this by insisting and never compromising on quality materials. Only work with professionals to ensure compliance with building codes and conduct regular quality inspections.
13. Connect with Local Support.
Build a reliable local network of fellow Nigerians abroad that have successfully built homes in Nigeria, and seek their recommendations and guidance on how they did theirs.
Successfully building a home in Nigeria while based abroad is a significant milestone. Remember that it takes effective planning, open communication, transparency, and quality control to realize your vision of building your dream home without tears.
Want to design your home? Go here.
In my next series concerning building your dream home, I will be sharing “The Role of the Architect when Building your dream home in Nigeria“.
Stay tuned.
