By Kingsley Adegboye

A real estate expert and estate surveyor, Chief Meckson Innocent Okoro, has said that opportunities in the property sector do not automatically create wealth, stressing that effective execution and productive development are key to turning opportunities into lasting value.

Okoro, popularly known as Chief M. I. Okoro, is the founding partner of M. I. Okoro & Associates, a firm of Estate Surveyors and Valuers. He is also a former Publicity Secretary and Fellow of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV).

He made the remarks while delivering a presentation titled, “The Future of Real Estate: Investment, Innovation and Wealth Creation,” at the Real Estate Expo Symposium organised as part of activities marking the 88th anniversary of Ikoyi Club 1938 in Lagos.

According to Okoro, Nigeria has significant opportunities in real estate due to urbanisation, population growth, housing demand and infrastructure development.

He, however, cautioned investors against relying solely on land speculation, urging them to focus on developing properties and identifying emerging areas where infrastructure is being provided.

“The future of real estate will belong to those who build and create value, not those who simply buy land and wait for it to appreciate,” he said.

He identified infrastructure as a major factor influencing property values, advising investors to monitor developments in roads, railways, power, water supply and other public infrastructure when making investment decisions.

“Follow the infrastructure pipeline. That is where the next value corridor will be,” he said.

Okoro also highlighted the growing influence of technology on the real estate industry, noting that artificial intelligence, digital mapping, drones, data analytics and smart-building systems were changing the way property was developed, marketed and managed.

He, however, warned that the same technology could be exploited to facilitate property fraud through fake listings and manipulated title documents.

He therefore called for stronger professional judgment, integrity, due diligence and access to reliable property data to protect investors and encourage greater capital inflows into the sector.

On affordable housing, Okoro advocated stronger collaboration among government, employers, financial institutions and property developers to expand access to home ownership.

He also recommended greater use of locally sourced building materials and more efficient construction methods to help reduce building costs.

The real estate expert called for increased participation by pension funds, insurance companies, banks and private equity investors in property financing, saying broader sources of capital would help support development in the sector.

For individual investors, he advised them to focus on infrastructure corridors, verify property titles before committing funds and consider Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and pooled investment funds as alternative investment vehicles.

Okoro also urged developers to incorporate sustainability into their projects, particularly measures relating to flood resilience, energy efficiency, drainage, water conservation and waste management.

He said successful real estate investment required a combination of capital, innovation and effective implementation.

“Investment provides the capital. Innovation multiplies what that capital can do. And execution turns both into lasting wealth,” he said.

Okoro urged participants at the symposium to focus on practical actions capable of moving Nigeria’s real estate industry away from speculation and towards productive value creation.

“When we gather to celebrate Ikoyi Club 1938 at 100, let us be able to look back and say that we did not just buy land. We built it,” he said.