₦airaland Forum

Many Nigerians abroad are building houses back home, but one problem keeps coming up.

A contractor or site person sends a new bill/payment request, but the owner is not physically around to confirm whether the work on site actually matches the amount being requested.

For example:

* Has the building really reached the stage being claimed?
* Are the quantities reasonable?
* Are the material prices current?
* Is the bill detailed enough to compare?
* Are photos and videos enough to trust the request?
* Should the next payment be released fully, partly, or held until more details are provided?

For people who have built, are currently building, or have helped family manage a building project in Nigeria:

How do you currently verify progress and costs before sending the next payment?

Do you rely on family, site photos, video calls, a QS, an engineer, a project manager, or do you travel back yourself?

I’m asking because this seems to be one of the biggest pain points for Nigerians building remotely, especially when money is being released stage by stage.

Would like to hear real experiences.