Real estate is a promising sector, especially when you know how to seize opportunities. Moreover, Côte d’Ivoire, and especially Abidjan, is full of excellent real estate investment opportunities. Whether it is for rental investment or for your personal use, the reasons that should encourage you to buy a land or a house in Abidjan are multiple.
This month, we present a list of various arguments for which Abidjan real estate should be part of your long term investment strategy.
1. The need for real estate infrastructure is real
The real estate sector is one of the most promising sectors in Côte d’Ivoire because it directly concerns the lives of the people, housing is a basic need for human beings in general. In addition, the Ivorian population continues to grow and increasingly seeks a certain comfort, a certain stability. The local population and the diaspora are well aware of the importance of staying or settling in the country to rehabilitate its economy.
In the cities of Abidjan or Yamoussoukro, the population is growing quickly and housing needs are increasingly being felt. The main Ivorian cities need houses for rent, for sale, rental buildings, hotels, furnished residencies, guest houses, etc.
2. Abidjan real estate market is growing
With a country that intends to become emerging in the near future, the multiplication of infrastructure and buildings has its place. This is the case in Côte d’Ivoire, where the real estate sector is evolving more and more with this concept of development more than ever implanted in Ivorians’ minds. Major projects are being developed in the cities of Grand-Bassam, Bingerville and Songon (near the popular commune of Yopougon), with relatively accessible pricing. The construction of bridges and expressways by the authorities has stimulated the growth of these agglomerations, which are now 30 minutes away from the center of Abidjan. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) rose from USD 302 million in 2011 (end of the war) to USD 913 million in 2018 and continues to evolve. Abidjan is a city with high economic potential in the sub-region and the real estate sector is not excluded from this trend.
3. Prices increase over the years
The law of supply and demand stipulates that the higher the demand for a product compared to the supply, the higher the price of that product. The real estate sector is no exception to this law. Considering that the need is real, that the demand is strong compared to the supply of real estate properties, the prices of land, villas, buildings available for sale rise. Also, the development of infrastructure that facilitates access to certain areas and the development of these areas contribute to the value of the real estate assets found there. This is particularly the case of the properties available on the road to Bassam where prices have quadrupled in a few years. Prices also soared in the Zone 4 area, where the square meter is the highest in the city, bargained between 400,000 and 600,000 CFA francs. While in the municipality of Cocody land prices have tripled or even quadrupled in less than ten years, middle-class housing worth between 20 and 30 million CFA francs twenty years ago is now worth more than 80 million. Conclusion : it is better to buy today because this accelerated development of the sector is not without effect on the rise of prices.
4. Ivorian real estate generates excellent incomes
the Ivorian real estate market has an interesting potential in Abidjan thanks to strong economic growth, the financial and banking poles of the large multinational groups are found there.
Rental yields vary from 9% for offices, 8% for trade, 12% for industrial real estate and 8% for high-end residential rentals such as Cocody and Zone 4*. In the category of premium real estate, Côte d’Ivoire is the country showing the highest rates with an average price of 427.65 euros per square meter for a villa. The development of high-end residences is mainly in zone 4/Bietry in the south, and Cocody and the Rivieras in the north. Moreover, Abidjan is the city that has experienced the fastest rental growth in Africa these past years. Take advantage of this growth and the incomes it generates !
5. Square meters are becoming increasingly scarce
There are far fewer vacant lots, and especially accessible, than before. The Groupement Ivoirien du Bâtiment et des Travaux Publics (GIBTP) estimates the shortage of housing in Abidjan between 400,000 and 600,000.
While significant investments are also expected in hotel construction and commercial and office real estate, where the square meter is missing, residential real estate is the one where the needs are the greatest.
Here are some reasons that should weigh in the balance when you hesitate to complete your real estate project by finally buying this house or land. We hope you’ll think about it when the time comes !
*(source FRANK KNIGHT, Africa Report 2020-2021)