4 Reasons Why Houses are Expensive to Buy in Ghana and Why the Average Citizen Cannot Afford Them

• Ghana is one of the countries with the most expensive prices of houses for sale and for rent which is a result of the country's housing crisis
• Many have complained about the fact that they may have to rent all their days because they just cannot afford to buy a home
• The salary of the average Ghanaian makes it virtually impossible for them to ever dream of buying a house

Many interventions have been employed to cushion people's financial ability to buy homes in Ghana such as the government's affordable housing projects and the emergence of many mortgage facilities that lend home loans to prospective homebuyers.

However, this does not change the fact that houses are still going to be costly whether there are other alternatives to afford them or not. YEN.com.gh mentions four reasons why this is the case.

Read also

Real estate trends in Ghana and their impact in the next 10 years

Building Materials are Expensive

Many high-end properties on the market are constructed with expensive building materials which were imported from other countries. Also, for estate developers to make their money back with profit, they will have to factor in the charges they paid as tariffs and import duties when importing building materials.

High-Interest Rate from Banks

Many developers take loans from banks usually at a high-interest rate to finance their building projects. The interest rate is added to the selling price of the house and transferred to homebuyers who eventually pay for it.

The Depreciation of the Cedi Against the Dollar

It is common knowledge that 90% of properties in Ghana are sold in dollars yet the cedis is always depreciating against the dollar. What this means is that the price of one property will continue to go up as far as the cedi continues to depreciate.

Read also

3 Things People Must Know Before Going to See a House

Incomes are too Low

As mentioned earlier, the average Ghanaian earns far too low to be able to afford properties that are priced in dollars. Many are not able to even qualify to be eligible for home loans which require an initial deposit of about 20% of the total price of the house.

Real Estate Trends in Ghana That will Shape the Industry for The Next 10 Years

In an earlier article, YEN.com.gh wrote about the nature of Ghana's real estate industry in 10 years' time. The sector has undergone major changes which are determining its current trend in the foreseeable future.

Source: YEN.com.gh