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In a bid to deepen the mortgage sector and enhance product relevance in the real estate financing space, AG Mortgage Bank Plc on Wednesday convened a focus group session aimed at re-examining a suite of mortgage and real estate financing products it is set to introduce into the market.
Stakeholders, including representatives from the banking sector, insurance, fund managers, and Financial Institutions Training Centre (FITC), emphasised the vast opportunities in Nigeria’s mortgage sector, asserting that the market remains largely untapped despite growing population demands.
Speaking with BusinessDay during the break session, Ngozi Anyogu, managing director and chief executive officer of AG Mortgage Bank Plc, explained that the programme was designed to gather critical market feedback on product acceptability, broaden perspectives beyond the traditional banking lens, and ensure market alignment of the offerings.
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“We are bringing a number of mortgage products and real estate financing solutions into the market. This focus group has been put together to review and re-express these products and speak to us about their likely acceptance in the marketplace,” he said. “Often, when you develop products, you end up speaking to yourself. But by engaging the market directly, we can evaluate how well these products will be received. That’s exactly what we are doing here today.”
Addressing the issue of low mortgage awareness, Anyogu noted that the bank is tackling the challenge through an ongoing and aggressive sensitisation campaign.
“One of our strategies has been organizing what we call ‘meet and greet’ forums, where we bring together reputable property developers and those who wants to buy properties. We’ve hosted these sessions in Lagos, Calabar, and most recently in Kano,” he said, adding that several more are planned before the end of the year. “These platforms have proven very effective in raising awareness.”
The Bank is also reaching out to Nigerians in the diaspora through targeted media channels to ensure the message on mortgage accessibility is widely disseminated.
“We believe awareness will grow incrementally. What started as a small effort from our end will, with time, become a national platform as more players join in.”
On the nature of the products being introduced, Anyogu clarified that while the bank is discussing 10 mortgage products, they are not entirely new but rather upgraded and tailored to meet specific market needs.
Read also: Mortgage sector: How national mortgage registry will shift paradigms, change narratives
While we have made significant strides, our goal now is to deepen our mortgage portfolio, which is a key reason why we have convened today’s session. Expanding our in-house portfolio has direct implications for the underwriting standards we will adopt. These standards will address fundamental principles as well as the defining features of the mortgage products under consideration.
“We are discussing 10 product types today. While none of them is completely new, because there is truly nothing new under the sun, we are enhancing the features of these products to better reflect the diverse needs of our customers,” he explained. “No two people are alike, and if one product doesn’t fit, another likely will. This focus group will help us identify what appeals to different segments.”
He added that the updated products would be added to the bank’s product basket, ensuring that any prospective customer finds a solution suited to their unique needs.
Anyogu reaffirmed his commitment to ensuring accessible, relevant, and customer-centric mortgage solutions. “We are committed to developing solutions that work for everyone, and this engagement is a major step in that direction.”
