Pastor Matthew Ashimolowo, Global President of Kingsway International Christian Centre, has issued a warning about the future of real estate investment in Lagos.
Speaking on a recent episode of the KK Show, Ashimolowo urged potential investors to seize opportunities in Lagos real estate now or face regret in a decade.
Reflecting on the past, Ashimolowo shared anecdotes of how land prices in Lagos were once low.
He recalled that in the 1970s and 1980s, plots of land in areas such as Opebi and Allen Avenue were priced between N500 and N1000, and the areas were largely undeveloped.
He said, “Anybody who does not invest in Lagos now will regret it in 10 years’ time. I remember when I came to Lagos as a young pastor, a plot in Opebi was N500, and Allen Avenue was N1000. These areas were nothing but bush at the time.”
Ashimolowo detailed his own experience with property investments, noting that he purchased land in Opebi for N10 million in 2004, which he later sold for between N120 and N150 million in 2018.
He lamented the missed opportunities from his earlier investments, particularly his loss in the share market.
The pastor also criticised investing in shares, particularly in Nigerian banks, citing a significant personal loss.
Ashimolowo said, “The Nigerian banks, I am here today, am 72, and can say what I like, if you take me to court, you are wasting your money because I intend to talk about investments, and why you should do real estate, and not all these buying shares in banks because I lost about N200m in Nigerian banks. N200m worth of shares and they didn’t sell it N30m; if I had used the money to buy land, I don’t even need to cut the grass.”
