The Federal Government has ordered the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria to increase its housing loan ceiling to ₦85 million. The directive was given by the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Professor Muttaqha Rabe Darma, during a real estate conference in Abuja.

The move is expected to help approve at least 2,000 mortgages every year. It will also allow National Housing Fund contributors to use up to 25 per cent of their Retirement Savings Accounts as equity for buying homes.

Darma also addressed the growing rent crisis in the country. He said the ministry is proposing a National Rent Registry, registration of large landlords, and stronger laws to protect both tenants and property owners.

The minister reaffirmed the government’s commitment to the Renewed Hope Social Housing Programme, which aims to deliver hundreds of housing units in each of Nigeria’s 774 local government areas. He noted that Nigeria’s housing deficit stood at about 15 million units as of 2025.

To protect homebuyers, the ministry is developing new regulations that will require developer licensing and escrow accounts for buyers’ funds. Darma invited stakeholders to join the process of shaping a safer and more transparent housing market.