₦airaland Forum

Focusmind:
Oga, make I take style dey save your pictures. Your pictures wey I don save for my laptop don plenty. Are the first and second pictures real or internet pictures? The last is clear. It is a real work, going by the wires seen there.

All images are from construction projects in Lagos, Nigeria. When you do simple stuffs, your build will stand out.

rotecch77:
I beg I no fii laugh,
The 1 and the 2 line can crack someone ribs
Abeg..

Similar things someone posted yesterday that he used 20bags of cement to constructed a structure that consumed 2000 blocks:
From foundation to roof level.

I said how come, he boldly told me that some of us don’t know new technology on how to build with lesser materials.

Imagine
2000 blocks
Columns
Beams
German floor is there ooo

Those folks fall into the class of “What do Builders really do?”

There are slap-and-fix houses and there’s home. It all boil down to owners choice.

Focusmind:
Hello Enyinne, I discussed these points you raised with her and her adviser, who happens to also owns a school. The adviser said that having 2pupils after 5months of starting a preschool/primary is not out of place. In her own case, she had just 7 people after 12 months (1 year) and then increased to 43 pupils and 11 toddlers after 5 years when she finally broke even.

Most times, you don't break even after starting a school and the break-even point is mostly after 5 years. Our experience with tenants in our current place is not encouraging her at all to rent the new apartment again to any one and she seems willing to wait out the gestation period of this school idea.

For me, I am not ready to wait out any shit as this builds has costs me a lot and if I should put a tenant there, the person must be thoroughly scrutinized and vetted to avoid any issue or willful default.

n3xt and EgunMogaji2 and other members, your inputs are still needed. MY sincere apologies to the whole members if I am diverting the intention of this thread away, which is not about school and business. Both we have seasoned analyst here, who have seen it all compared to other threads.

Even in my estate where tenants are scrutinized by the home owners association and stringent conditions are attached to house rental, people still default.

I agree it takes time to break even but here’s what we did. We started small. You don’t have to go all out and put in all the monies at once.

When we wanted to start, some folks almost discouraged my wife with the it-takes-time-to-breakeven story. I told them “Whether we do it now or in a decade, it’ll still take time. We can solve this by giving time some time. Time heals everything. It’s our house and we aren’t paying rent to anyone. That’s a big plus!”

I personally hate tenancy issues (no pun intended) and avoid it at all cost so I’m just about the wrong person to support your move on this sir.

If the prospect is high around you, I’d suggest you support madam. I know it ain’t easy taking up another capital intensive project after your build..

megacontrol:
"just start first with what you have and let's see how it goes..."
"shebi it's just a kobokobo bungalow? no need to pay plenty money for pros, we go run am for site"

Put wall here. Add pillar meji. Curve it small.

Is the room still small? Add 2 blocks. Reduce door....


We’re better than this!

Building without a plan or a cheap plan

omanzo02:
It can be done!

We eventually got a 5 bedroom, 2 kitchen, 2 lounge, 2 dining and 6 toilets from the plot.

Everything was on a single floor and they’re all standard rooms.

Pic 1 - Main Flat

uncleteeh:
Kai. This is serious o.
What kind of structure can be erected on this aside shops?
What about approval?

Interestingly something good was eventually achieved after some tweak and twist.

It’s here https://www.kobocity.com/d/86-please-help-check-the-drawing

Enyinne:
My estate is well built at the heart of sangotedo but how many working class women are willing to drop off kids at crèche? Most having househelp will keep them at home until ready for kindergarten as cost of living is bitten hard on every Nigerian. Obtaining a Montessori training and educational training courses will pay her off at the long run and establishing preschool to primary classes than crèche. Patience is key in establishing such so to get it right once and for all .

Experience and passion is key. Your points are very valid.

My wife got trained on infant-toddler/early childhood education with North American Montessori Center and Heritage House, Lagos.
So our focus is just on age 6 months -3 years for now. The experience is quite amazing.

At first, it seem the idea won’t fly but eventually it did. The growth was amazing and I was glad we actually had a better use for the large building and compound.
Even my one room tenant had a school that has grown into over 400 pupils within just 4 years.

I think starting a preschool in Nigeria has a lot to do with location. You must be in a location where such service is mostly required.

segzyfunmi:
Alright sir, thanks a lot for your contribution.

I'll get the drawings and upload. I was just trying to let you know that I had no issues whatsoever with the engineer unlike the way you thought....just that we felt we needed to compare the Engineer's quote with another person's own.

In every endeavor of life we need to sample opinions and always compare before arriving at our own conclusion.

Perfect! Share the plan.

Abeokuta is my hometown and I knew quite a number of construction professionals in the city. I’ve had experience working there and I also have teeaammms (you know what I mean) working on multiple projects that are ongoing.

Labour rate is quite cheap when compared with Lagos which is my actual base. Concrete workers (mostly female) charge between N1,500 - N2,000 (I gladly offer them more cos I respect hardworking ladies/women).

The hardest part of construction in the city is always the excavation so beware of online advices coming from those who have never built in the city before.
As a matter of fact, 95% of the crew I’m working with on my ongoing projects are from Abeokuta.

So share your plan and I’d be able to give you an option quote to work with. I also have access to tons of building materials suppliers who’d offer you the most competitive pricing.

Sorry I misconstrued your intentions.

Focusmind:
Kai, you will always represent. Very nice and clean. She wants to start off on it immediately because of a promise of fund and assistance from a friend in US.

However, I still maintain my position that renting out the apartment is still the best and not pre-school. Competition in that space is stiff. As for qualification, she has B.Ed qualification and social work training.
Thanks

Make her understand why starting off right away might not be the best option.

There are lots of thing that you need to take care of within the first year.

Enyinne:
Crèche location plays a vital role , if u locate in an obscure area , just know that it will take alot of time to make tangible progress /profit . A similar thing hv played out of recent . A New building opposite my house was being rented 1.6m yearly for 3bedroom flat , the man hv rented 3 out 4 flats . The wife hv insisted opening a crèche in the 4th flats , after pleading with the woman to consider rental and collect 1.6m but she said she must open Creche . 5months down ,only 2kids are there . Everyone blames them for citing creche in such estate . Pls check ur location, the kind of people living there before taking such decision.

Very valid point here.

segzyfunmi:
I wonder if you truly understood my post. I'm shocked at your reasoning on this matter. Everything you wrote up here was just off course.

Firstly, what's my approach to construction?? There are experts on this forum and I've asked for their advice just so that I can have a balanced view.

Secondly, how did you arrive at the conclusion that I just want to prove the engineer is insincere?? Once again check every single post I've made and read to understand before stating your opinion. I mentioned that the drawings were not with me.

Lastly, I haven't said that the engineer has done anything wrong, neither have I said that we can't meet up. I just put up the post to seek expert's advice on the matter, and compare prices. Even you mentioned in one of your post that the owner should get at least 3 quotation and compare prices....how then don't you understand its all about expert's advice and price adjustment??

Pls always vet before you submit. Ensure you have understood before you comment.

Sorry sir I misunderstood you. I hope you find answers to your questions.

Happy Building!


_________

Just so you know it sir, no builder has x-ray vision to determine cost of a building without a building plan/dimension or sketch. It just doesn’t make any sense!

That’s the thing you’re doing wrong.

Focusmind:
My people, I need your opinion as we are in decision stage.

My build is a 4 -bedroom duplex in front (3-bedroom up and 1-bedroom down) and a 3- bedroom duplex at the back (2- bedroom up and 1- bedroom downstairs)

I intend renting out the back for an initial period and would later repurpose it as a daycare/preschool - this would be after some years and after the first tenant may have vacated.

We may likely commence interior works for the buildings once the funds are available and I have been advised to go directly with designing and setting the back build as daycare/preschool immediately instead of putting it for outright renting and coming back later to repurpose it for crèche business, which is the final ultimate goal of the build.

We were told to forget about renting it out if the final intention was to still make it a preschool. My woman has already bought the idea but I told her that school takes time to mature and you may continue to incur costs running it in years to come. I would prefer outright renting for the main time, as the rent may likely fetch a reasonable sums based on the annual rental charge within that estate and neighborhood. Then in years to come, we may consider repurposing it for preschool and crèche uses, respectively.

What do you suggest? Our business minded folks like n3xt, EgunMogaji and other key guys, please what is/are your take on these two options?

Big Boss!

I hope madam already have a formal training.

If no, let her get started as soon as possible. It takes 6 months.

If yes, proceed to the next step. Commence plans for the crèche, It doesn’t take long time to get the business off ground.

I’d do anything to make my madam happy. This is one of it.

We started ours during the last quarter of 2020 and we already had 2 classes filled. It actually cost us some money but it’s worthwhile cos that what madam love.

Between last October and this moment, we’ve realized what we’d have charged for rental of the property from tuition fees paid.

I’m already considering repurposing the whole house for this project because everyone who visit the school loved it at first sight.

rotecch77:
Like this

This ke? @uncleteeh can tell you we’ve seen far worse on kobocity.com

See this... I have to give kudos to the architect who worked on this plot.

scolexboss77:
thanks sir

You can also have a perfect 5 bedroom on a standard one plot with ample space.

somehow:
Okay sir. How did you/do I get the form?

You can get through me or go to the Conference Room, Ministry of Housing, Ogun state. There are many others here who have done this through me.

somehow:
But I would still have to pay tax at the end of the day even though I don't live there? Is this how it works?

I have to find out but most of the people who have this form aren’t living in Nigeria let alone Ogun state and 3 years tax in Ogun state is nothing big.

I specifically asked about it before obtaining the form and I was asked to proceed without worries. In case they ask for it, I’m sure 200k - 300k or thereabout won’t be a big problem.

I can easily take that as cost of fencing or drawing a plan and obtaining approvals for the building.

rotecch77:
Thanks chief
We are trying to see how we can reduce uses of outside screeding for the purpose of wall (smoothing) in most of our work to save clients some cost. Unless if it’s for another purpose.
Bcs I can see that most screeding now is to correct walls that are not well plastered.

And come to think of it, you hardly see such in old building and there wall finishings are superb.

Here are some pics of our diff site location plastering work.

Sweet like potato

vickzie:
majority of houses are habitable, the question should be "are they enjoyable and comfortable for the price spent"?

Point!

Apologist02:
Thank you sir for the prompt response. I studied civil engineering and I'm more particular with construction methods at this stage of my career. But I will like to learn other aspects also as I have great prospect for the future.
I've once visit ur site but I will explore it more now. Please how do I get these videos and are there more specifics on how to connect with u sir outside the site?

Let’s take the discussion to the other side (kobocity.com)

You can reach me using the PM function.

somehow:
Please, can you help me apply or I have to live in Ogun state to own one?

You don’t have to live in Ogun state to apply but you might need to pay tax here because it’s part of the requirement though not compulsory when you’re picking up the form.

The form is N5k. The cost of logistics is N5k (not compulsory if you can handle it yourself).

Apologist02:
@n3xt
Good day sir
I've always been impressed with ur concept of engineering and how we should be doing it here in Nigeria. I'm a young individual (with little/no experience) who has so much interest in the construction business with a view of doing things differently.
I presently don't have much going on for me but I've doing my best to follow global trends and innovation in the construction industry.
I need exposure to practical works so that I can learn. I'm presently based in Ilorin and I want to know if u have any ongoing project around here. I will be glad to receive your feedback sir.

Well done and thanks bro! As a retiree I always do these stuffs to keep myself busy and engage younger ones.

I was only in Ilorin once and that was over 2 decades ago.
The world is a global village now, you can connect with me on kobocity.com

I’ll be sharing a lot of innovative projects on that platform. Are there any specifics (woodworking, metal works, formwork/shuttering, best design practices, construction methodologies...) you’d like to know more about?

There are lots of videos out there that will teach you how to do solve most complex challenges. Let’s connect.

darkid1:
Thanks...Tried to keep everything simple. Would upload more overall progress.

You can also share your projects on kobocity.com

We love seeing beautiful projects like yours

vickzie:
sometimes the terrible ones are denied approval. It's not even their job to begin to analyse drawings. Na the owner go suffer am. You pay the number 1 man 45k, how much do even even pay labourers sef?

You’re right!

I do offer FREE design service as a complimentary service for some projects I’m directly involved (not all the time though ) BUT my in-house architect earn as much as 250k per month and I bought him a very power machine with ray tracing capability to keep. This is outside our Mac and HP workstation.

This mean I’m paying in some ways!

Beside, we do outsource most of our renderings and structural designs to other professionals.

Offering free design service doesn’t mean we are cheap though it’s a complimentary service for a selected few.

darkid1:
No questions to ask, just here posting a progress so far with a property my family has been working on.

Super transformation. Good job!

I love the simplicity of that ceiling design. It’s not the overly designed type.

neduboo:
Cement has climbed up in my area in Lagos. I bought cement #2900 per bag last week Monday, now it's selling for #3000 per bag

It’ll likely go a little higher in the coming days according to an inside source.

Badgers14:
Thanks. At least the system is working a lot better.very happy to hear that!

I hope government are not allowing one big man to buy this wholesale and then resale to the highest bidder.

No! I’ve obtained my form and I’m paying gradually.

There’s no such thing as big-man-bully. It’s what you accept. Me I don’t take nonsense and such bs don’t happen around me.

hairbyuj:
Please how much be the price of

1ton of 10MM,

12MM

16MM iron rod

Site is in Awoyaya.

@ Amastermovic
@ mountmoriah

Both of them are Kobocity verified suppliers. They’ll attend to this shortly.

Badgers14:
Just curious on how this process works, does everyone that purchase form and capable of financing the house be allocated one or is the allocation done by lottery?

I ask because many Federal housing estate I know of or heard of.. they always say low income housing bla bla but low income people don't live there.. it is always rich people that end up living in places like that.

When someone buys form, you go waka back and forth to the office tire..

I hope that's not the case here..

On this, it is on first-come-first-serve basis. It’s not lottery.

Some have even finished making their payments to the govt. The govt need to recoup their investment so allocation goes to those who have completed their payments and those who are financed by Gateway Mortgage Bank

n3xt:
Updates: Ogun Affordable Home Scheme

Attn: Subscribers

- Some receipt are ready. Please kindly get in touch to confirm if your receipt is ready.

- Sales of form is temporarily on hold for now. It may resume in the upper week.

- New schemes have commenced in Siun, Iperu, Ijebu Ode, Otta.

- Those who have received their receipt can start making payments.

- Prince Court, Abeokuta is fully ready for habitation. I’ll do a tour of the project sometimes next week on kobocity.com

- For more details, follow us on https://www.kobocity.com/d/55-informationupdates-on-various-low-cost-housing-schemes

_______

Pic 1&2 - Prince Court

Update:


For those who requested for form last week, sales of form for the Ogun State Affordable Housing Scheme has resumed.

Badgers14:


And they will come out from an office Like that to tell an owner this and that..

They’re the govt!

Badgers14:
Maybe the government shouldn't be approving those plans.

The government in a way might be aiding all this poor design, poor construction and all.

Do we even have statutory requirements in Nigeria?

Are the appropriate authorities enforcing it? Or they just care about all the fees you have to pay ?

Most buildings in naija do not have building plan approval. Those who do always build something different from what was approved.

We have building codes document that most professionals don’t even care about.

The enforcing agencies only care about fees and the kickbacks. The regulatory bodies only care about titles and salaries. All you hear them say is I’m a licensed professional

When leadership get better, everyone wins.

__________

Pic - Entrance leading to Disttict Approval Office in a south west state. You can imagine what yo expect