Six years ago, Veritasi homes was a one-employee company but has evolved over time, becoming a household name with over 20,000 real estate consultants, 2000 realtors and more than 20 full time staff in 2020.
Led by Adetola Nola, chief executive officer of Veritasi Homes and Properties Limited, the firm’s success has been attributed to a team of young, resilient men and women with vast experience in the real estate sector.
Nola can be described as an outstanding entrepreneur who has passed through thick and thin in taking his firm through a positive growth trajectory, one that has made the company attain an enviable position, and a standard for other players in the industry.
In 2019, Nola was named in the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, where he joined 29 other exceptional entrepreneurs in the business category.
The announcement was made at the Houghton hotel in Johannesburg to commemorate the annual Forbes Africa Under 30 Meet-up in association with Kingdom Business Network (KBN). Only four Nigerians making impact in different industries were named in the business category.
In 2015, he founded Veritasi Homes and Properties Limited, a real estate firm that provides marketing, advisory and development services across the entire real estate value chain in Nigeria. The firm has a special interest in property development.
Before founding Veritasi homes, the 30-year old CEO, started various companies that did not see limelight. One of such firms was a leather company, which he named Noha&nola. He also established Pineapples retail stores, a fashion retail company among others.
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However, the failures of these firms did not deter him. He moved to work as an agent in grenadines homes with his brother who introduced him to real estate.
Nola in an emailed response to Businessday questions recounted that at some point he felt like he wanted to give more clients greater value for their money. He wanted to build cheaper houses delivered in a short period of time without compromising quality.
That was the motivation that gave birth to Veritasi which today has become a household name for those seeking real estate services.
Since it started in 2015, Veritasi now has no fewer than six estates to its name. Among notable achievements by the firm is the Camberwall project, which is aimed at reducing housing deficit for Nigerians.
The firm is building 500 units of apartments across Lagos state and Abuja, and has started a first phase that entails building 100 units in Abijo area of Lagos. According to the firm this first phase should be delivered by October/november this year.
Nola said the firm is delivering the project without a single loan from a bank, but with the help of private investors who have believed in the company’s projects over the years.
“We have made sure to get mortgages with good interest for our clients. Either through the federal mortgage or private mortgage to ease payment while delivering early. Trust us to deliver on our promises,” Nola said.
As a business, due to the harsh operating environment, crossing a five-year mark in Africa’s largest economy is almost difficult especially in the real estate sector, that is plagued with a lot of challenges from lack of funds, to a weak consumer wallet and widening infrastructural gap.
The sector has continued on a negative growth for three quarters since Q2 2019, despite the country succeeding to limp out of the economic recession of 2016. It is quite alarming, analysts say, for a sector as such, which is supposed to enjoy the benefit of a large market from a population of 200 million people.
The answer to this lies in a burgeoning population faced with a falling per capita income that has culminated into escalating Nigeria’s housing crisis.
Data by Graeme Blaque Group, a Lagos-based advisory firm, showed that of the 69.54 million who are gainfully employed, only 5 million earn a salary of N3 million and above per year, to give them the leverage to own an affordable home in the country. These are those who fall in the country’s working or middle class let alone those at the lowest end of the pyramid.
The crisis could be more devastating with the coronavirus pandemic, which has ravaged the entire globe and has forced countries to initiate lockdowns, as one of the numerous measures aimed at curtailing the spread. The real estate and construction sectors are expected to be among the biggest losers following these lockdowns.
For young players like Nola, who have invested hugely in technology, the pandemic is only a way to leverage more on the use of tech.
According to him, since the pandemic started, the firm has continued to use technology to stay n business, digitizing all its processes from inspection to payment down to document preparation. “On several occasions, we have had meetings on google hangouts and zoom. I think we have the best response to this pandemic, and it’s aided by technology,” he said.
For Veritasi, Nola said, taking a clue from the 2016 scenario, the firm has hedged against any form of currency devaluation by stocking inventory to prepare ahead of any impending crisis.
“One sweet thing about real estate is sometimes we are not greatly affected by the effects of recession. If you’re financially smart, you will manage to stay afloat. When recession happens, the country is broke. Asset managers advise investors to buy more real estate than fixed income, which most of the time is wise for investors,” he said.
While reacting to the increased housing crisis, Nola noted that solving the housing deficit in Nigeria shouldn’t be the job of the government alone, rather, a joint effort.
He explained that there should be Joint Ventures between developers and Government. Let the government provide cheaper capital. He noted that when a developer gets very expensive capital from commercial banks, the high cost of capital will be transferred to the client when paying.
In addition, good titled cheap lands should also be made accessible by the government. “When there are less strict policies given to developers, and foreign funding allowed to come in easily, then you will see us close the gap on the housing deficit,” Nola said.
The young.ceo noted that apart from loans from commercial banks, which are very expensive, there are also foreign funds that are cheaper and are given by more patient investors.
In addition to that, he said private investors can bring in cash by way of private equity, to be part of a project, noting that his company has paid every single one of its investors till date without one single default.
He advised developers and real estate players not to venture into the business just to make money as there are other ways to make money.
“Real estate is a stressful way to just make money, he said. You have to be consistent, persistent, dogged, and determined to make a mark in the real estate space. Look beyond the ordinary but it’s doable,” Nola noted.
As an innovative entrepreneur, Nola does not only have a footprint in real estate alone, but also in tourism. He founded Nola travels and tours limited, and he is also making huge investments in Agric and commodities, also currently eyeing the financial sector space.
As an entrepreneur who has an eye for growth, Nola said the company is open for higher growth whether organically or inorganically as long it is sustainable.
“Either we are the acquirer or the target company. We will negotiate when the time and condition is right . We also have the intention of taking Veritasi public very soon,” he said
