By Onome Amawhe

Women are becoming more active and aggressive as investors who are taking control of their financial future. And just as flexible hours are just one reason why more and more women are finding a new career working with property, it’s no longer the house that Jack built.

In the past five years or more, Jack has found himself facing stiff competition from Jill, who is edging her way into a traditionally male- dominated industry.

Bukola Gadzama, CEO Buildcon Global Services Limited, is one such Jill. Once an employee in a foremost real estate company, Gadzama got fed up with a finance and marketing career that involved long hours and making lots of money for others, Gadzama made a decision: “I had to resign when I realized that my children only see me during weekends and I was missing out on their developmental stages. So, I started a party packs/souvenir business but I realized that almost every phone call I received was from someone who needed real estate advice or a property to purchase,” the Buildcon CEO said.

Bukunola-Gadzama

In this interview, Bukola Gadzama shares her thoughts on the real estate business and more.

PROJECT Concepts:

I have been involved with various projects but with BuildCon Global Services, we have three estates currently on going. Our estates are called Pracht Gardens; we have two in Ikota (before VGC, Lagos) and one about three minutes from Lagos Business School. Conceptualizing an estate is easier when you know your clients well and have an idea of what your target market would want in their immediate environment; e.g., a reliable and registered crèche, a neighborhood commercial building that will house a supermarket, pharmacy, estate clinic and office facilities will appeal to an upper-middle income young family.
Government policies also give guidelines on the type of buildings you can have in different locations.

Early Challenges
I had funding issues when I started; most banks don’t fund real estate projects, especially a start-up. Fact is, people have idle funds occasionally and banks’ deposit rates are low but real estate can give you fantastic returns on investment. So, I decided to encourage equity investors, both foreign and home based. Since then, we’ve had a smooth running with all stakeholders (including clients), achieving their desires.

After stabilising, my major challenge is accessing cheaper mortgages for our clients. The cummulative interest on mortgages are so high that we would rather give our clients a longer time to pay than let them pay such interests. Sourcing for very good artisans in Nigeria is also quite challenging.
Operating in a male dominated industry.

Ninety-eight percent of our clients are men and they buy because they believe a woman will give attention to detail and that a woman will be particular about aesthetics and will also run the estate properly. My two executive directors are men. My board of trustees are all men. I have met a couple of male colleagues in the industry who have been quite supportive.

Consideration in siting an estate and unique features
Before siting an estate, we conduct a market survey to help decide on the estate that best suits our prospective clients in terms of location, facilities and budget. The unique factors of Buildcon Global Services are:
– We make housing affordable by offering a very flexible payment plan. We work with our clients’ cash flow; some people have funds at certain times of the year – like upfront, bonuses etc.
– Our clients are allowed to change the internal spaces of their houses before commencement of their project.
– We work closely with our clients on the finishing of their homes. Experience has shown that a lot of people spend a tidy sum of money to make their newly acquired houses suitable for them; hence, we allow our clients to get involved. They choose their tiles, kitchen designs, internal colours and sanitary fittings.
– All our clients have a page on our website where they can view the progress of their projects and also chat with our customer service desk, if need be.
Dos and Don’ts when it comes to buying property.
Properties can be bought in two ways, either off-plan or outright purchase. Outright sales are much easier because what you see is what you get. However, ensure that you get the seller to give you a six months’ liability period where he/she fixes anything that is not properly done and it is evident that you didn’t misuse it.

Structural stability

For off-plan purchase, you need to ensure both parties are clear on what the deliverables are. Ask questions; be VERY comfortable with the plan. Do not sign an offer letter that does not expressly list what you should expect at the end of your payment plan. Do not be swayed by low “too-good-to-be-true” prices; everybody is in business to earn a living.

Ask yourself why is this company/person selling me a fully-detached 5-bedroom duplex at N35 million in a neighborhood where the value of the land alone is N25 million.

In cases, documentation/title and government approval is VERY important. You need to do a search on the property to ensure that it is free of any encumbrances and also find out the title that will be passed to you. This is also very important for those buying land.

Buildcon Global Services focuses on off-plan sales because apart from making it affordable for prospective buyers, it also encourages their involvement and they are sure of the structural stability of their houses.

Cost of Property
Our prices vary, depending on the location of the estate. Prices in real estate are influenced by several factors like: Location, estate infrastructure, quality of materials (used) – especially the finishing, design and size of each unit and quality of workmanship.

Operating on a strictly by invitation basis
It is strictly by invitation. However, interested individuals can contact us directly so we can add them to the guest list. This is to ensure that we are putting like-minded individuals together.

Reacting to stereotypes
Well, I’m now very familiar with the look on people’s faces when I walk into a meeting and I’m introduced. That has reduced considerably as women are doing a lot in the business world now.

Juggling glamour with the tough job of building
I won’t say I’m glamorous but I like to look good. I have a wonderful team in place; they make my job easier and we have a fantastic team spirit.
Ancillary services

Apart from building estates, BuildCon Global Services also helps individuals to develop their properties. We engage in joint ventures with individuals who have parcels of land to develop – 2 houses or more.

We also consult for people who have made bad real estate investments and are eager to get out of it.

We are into facilities management and interior decorations.