Stories By Jude Njoku

Messrs Ibile Holdings Limited, the investment company of the Lagos State Government which ventured into real estate development following the crash in the stock market, has given the property market in the Lekki axis a boost with the construction of 46 units of luxury houses in the highbrow neighbourhood.

The estate which is billed for completion in September this year, is being developed by Messrs IHL Properties Limited, the real estate subsidiary of Ibile Holdings. Employing the novel American Forms building technology, the estate which sits on a 1.7 hectares parcel of land at Igbokusu village along the Lekki -Epe expressway, would be called Platinum Rows Estate.

Platinum Rows estate ... last week

Conducting newsmen round the estate which is ensconced between Nicon Town and Femi Okunnu Housing Estate, the Managing Director of IHL Properties Limited, Mr Adeyinka Onigbanjo said Platinum Rows Estate consists of 46 units of four-bedroom terrace houses and a one-room boys quarter. “By the time it is completed, it will have all the modern facilities like alternative power supply. We are going to instal generators. We are going to have a borehole and a sewage treatment plant; each house will not have its own soak away pit. Part of the fittings will be a factory fitted kitchen, the rooms will have the wardrobe and the store will also be there,” Mr Onigbanjo said.

Designed by the architectural firm of Messrs Woodshavers, work on the construction of N2 billion estate was flagged of in November 2010 when the contractors, Messrs Tri-City Nigeria Limited in alliance with Walls Ties and Forms Limited, the American company that owns the Forms construction technology, moved to site. Vanguard Homes & Property observed that most of the buildings are already at the roofing stage.

Flaunting the advantages of the Forms building system, the IHL Properties boss said: “The Forms technology is an American technology. It is different from pre-cast system; it is also a cast system but it is cast in-situ. So, in terms of structural stability, all the walls are low-bearing walls and give the building that element of structural support. So, the issue of differential settlement where you have cracks in buildings will not arise with this technology because every wall is also reinforced.

every wall, there is a steel reinforcement in it and all the mechanical and electrical services are conduit. It gives a very fine finish once it is completed. The technology also guarantees the benefit of speed of completion; it also guarantees the benefit of low pricing although not too low but you can get about 15 percent discount on the cost of construction when you are using the technology. And why this is so is because the issue of cement screeding (plastering) does not arise”.

Mr Onigbanjo said his company embarked on the construction of Platinum Rows because of its desire “to develop a first class upper-medium income residential estate comparable with the highest standards and professionally managed”.

According to him, the company will provide high grade finishing materials, adequate security for residents and other first class facilities and amenities. These incluade a green area, ample car parking spaces, fitted kitchens, upscale sanitary fittings, recreation space that will include a mini-swimming pool and mini-gym, exquisite landscaping and CCTV.

The infrastructure would also include tarred internal roads using the interlocking paving stones, drainage, perimeter fencing, gatehouse, security lighting, and central borehole.

Prospective buyers are expected to cough out N50 million for a unit of property in the estate. But the company says it has packaged a flexible payment plan that would enable buyers to pay an initial instalment of 30 percent of the cost of the unit. Another 30 percent will be paid when the building reaches the first floor deck, while the third instalment of 20 percent would be paid at the roof stage. The last 20 percent will be paid on taking delivery of the property. Mr Onigbanjo said the company has approached some Cooperatives Societies in multi-national companies and affluent Nigerians to buy into the estate.