Lagos — Nigeria’s mortgage lenders are buckling under the weight of unpaid loans as job losses and inflation, which are at a near record-high, hinder the ability of customers to settle their debts. "They are just struggling to survive," Adeniyi Akinlusi, president of the Mortgage Banking Association of Nigeria, said in an interview in Lagos, the commercial capital. "A lot of them aren’t making money." While the association said it isn’t aware of any mortgage lenders on the verge of collapsing, increased pressure on the nation’s 36 home-loan providers presents another challenge to President Muhammadu Buhari, whose administration is grappling with how to reverse the first contraction in GDP in 25 years. Rising costs for everything from building materials to school fees has meant the industry has been stagnant since June, Akinlusi said. At least 55% of the mortgage industry’s 94-billion naira ($300m) of loans are classified as non-performing, Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation, an A...
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