Rex Onuorah on building homes for diaspora-based Nigerians

BY MITTERAND OKORIE

One of Nigeria’s most promising real estate company, Asilarex Properties, has simplified life for many Nigerians in the diaspora with respect to owning properties back home. Founded and owned by Rex Onuorah, Asilarex Properties, although headquartered in Enugu, operates from its Europe and American offices. In this enthralling interview, Rex offers rare insights into the Nigerian real estate sector, detailing the present gaps in the industry and why he offers something exceptional.

A sublime businessman, Rex has carved a niche for himself in the industry by focusing on Nigerians in the diaspora with respect to assisting them build homes and invest in real estate back home. He has built over 50 residential homes, he tells me, most of them for individuals who are not based in Nigeria. “While I build homes for all kinds of people and for all kinds of purposes, Nigerians living abroad are my main target market.

The Nigerian diaspora market or the vast business opportunities it represents is something that is surprisingly rarely talked about, but it is something Rex has taken a keen interest on.

“Over the past decade and half, I have lived and spent time in different parts of the world”, he states, “the Middle East, South Africa, America and Europe, so I have first-hand experience of how frustrating it can be to want to own a house back home when you cannot come down and do it yourself but left with the option of having to rely on family and friends who just simply see you as some ATM, and who often go on being very wasteful with money.” In other words, he continued, “Having been a part of this community myself and lived through some of these experiences, when I moved back to Nigeria and started my real estate business, I wanted to do something different against doing what everyone else was doing, more so in a manner that solves a problem and addresses a human need. So that led me to focusing on helping Nigerians in diaspora with their real estate need in any part of Nigeria.

From World Bank estimate, Nigerians in diaspora (who are numbered at 15 million) remitted $US21 billion in 2015, $US35 billion in 2016, and $US38 billion in 2017. Consequent on this, it is fair to consider that a huge fraction of these remittances are sent home to friends, siblings or family members to inject it into housing projects for the beneficiary who is based overseas. Most of the time however, such expectations are never met. Rex’s business therefore began, some 7 years ago, by targeting close friends who were disappointingly sending money back home for building projects that were either poorly executed or never got done at all.

“For a good number of Nigerians abroad, the need to build a house is always there,” he tells me, “Not simply for the necessity of shelter, since they are mostly there only during the Christmas or Easter festivities. But for most of our people, having their own home is an object of pride and status.”

Naturally therefore, Nigerians based abroad would always be interested in building a house or acquiring properties back home, especially since their own monetary source are hardly affected by the biting economic situations back home. However, because no one wants to be ripped-off while undertaking such project, they would rather defer the dream or foreclose it.

“But if they cannot trust their own sibling or family not to do a shoddy job or misuse their money, why would they trust you?” I ask him.

“You are correct,” he responds. “While I knew I was bringing a vital and professional solution to the table, I knew that issues of trust would always present a hurdle. But here’s the thing, I had to start with building for some of my close friends. That was how I piloted to building for others, because referrals are the greatest asset you can call upon in this business. People we’ve executed projects for have been able to inform their friends about us, and others have been able to trust us. If someone else can vouch for your integrity, another person is likely to be convinced enough to believe you. Furthermore, as I’ve always repeatedly told members of my staff that ours is a business of integrity before any other thing. Personally, I believe that integrity is the foundational basis of every sustainable business. Being distinctively different and maintaining our integrity is what guarantees our stay in business.”

But Rex hasn’t simply let referrals be the grounds for convincing prospective clients. He has set up the company in ways that offer legal guarantees to his clients. Asilarex Properties is therefore registered not only in Nigeria, but in Europe and in the United States of America. “I had to go through these rigours because I don’t simply want to tell clients, you can count on my word when we put pen to paper about executing a project for you. I wanted to prove to them that my company is registered right in their countries or regions, and they can sue us if we don’t deliver. That they can always hold us accountable, in Nigeria, in Europe, or in America.”

Yet, Integrity and accountability are not the only qualities Rex tries to assure clients. Quality without compromises is something he says he is very amped about. It is not enough, he tells me, motioning to the edge of his seat, that he provides alternatives for diaspora Nigerians who are tired of dealing with unreliable family or friends or contractors back home. But he is also interested in making the end product something that is highly desirable by modern standards. Further, he explains that most of the people in his team are returnees that used to live overseas and have done real estate at advanced level in developed countries and as such know their onions quite well and have taken their craft up a certain notch before deciding to relocate back home.

What is more, Rex tells me that strict compliance with the timelines of the project is something he tries to be very mindful of, as those are some of the places the cracks of doubts can begin to creep in for clients. “If we say substructure to DPC level would be done in 3 weeks, then that’s it. We get it done. We offer definitive timelines.”

“Transparency in the entire process is also something I am keen about,” he continues. “I try to make sure there is zero ambiguity for clients. There are no hidden costs or open-ended charges. No such thing as: ‘oga, I go market today, but the price of wood don add money’. No, such things do not arise with me, instead I would make up for the shortfall, so long as I and my client have already developed and signed a costed plan. Having spent over a decade in the western world, I perfectly understand the importance of budgeting. We’ve tailored our services in such a way that even salary earners in Europe or America can flag off projects and do them in stages. In contrasts to some of our contemporaries in Nigeria, we fully understand that money isn’t as easy to come by overseas as people at home believe. So we’ve made provisions for people at different strata of life.  Even though 85% of our clients are not likely to be on ground to witness construction, we still do not downsize on quality to make up for any shortfall in the building estimate. Because a quality work will always speak well of you.”

All of these, he tells me, is how his company has been able to guarantee quality service delivery in an industry that is plagued by unnecessary complexities and insincere contractors.

“How often do you get called on to handle these projects?” I asked him. He smiles and says, “Not as often as I would have loved, but I am happy to have worked with some very wonderful clients and happy on the jobs I have been able to deliver.”

“Actually,” Rex continued, “There’s this Nigerian lady in Germany I was introduced to recently. She is the only daughter in her family and has no siblings here in Nigeria. A friend in Texas (USA) whom I did a project for told her about me. So this is how spontaneous offers can come when you’re in the sector I’m in. But I’m thankful to God for the progress so far.”

On a closing note, I jokingly ask him if he can build me a house. “Yes,” he laughs, but soon adds, “First, tell those your friends abroad that people like us are here for them if they want to build or acquire a house back home.”

Mitterand Okorie is a writer, academic and communications consultant. He is on Twitter @Mitterism while Rex Onuorah can be reached via [email protected] and on Instagram @asilarex, Twitter @asilarex