Today in History: Why real estate owners are charging in dollars

On September 2, 2022, the Executive Secretary of the Ghana Real Estate Developers Association, Samuel Amegayibor, noted that the instability of the cedi was a major reason real estate developers charge in dollars.

He further explained that the rising cost of building materials also contributes to the pricing of the buildings in dollars to withstand any internal and external shock.

Read the full story originally published on September 2, 2022 by www.ghanaweb.com.

Executive Secretary of the Ghana Real Estate Developers Association, Samuel Amegayibor, has explained that the instability of Ghana’s local currency has forced real estate developers and contractors to price their properties in dollars.

According to him, the increasing cost of inputs, particularly cement, puts undue pressure on developers to consistently peg their properties against the daily exchange rate.

In a report posted on JoyNews’ Facebook page on August 17, 2022, sighted by GhanaWeb, Amegayibor stated that the prices of properties fluctuate as the exchange rate changes.

“January you are buying the cement at GH¢40, February you are buying it at GH¢45, March you are buying it at GH¢48, June you are buying it at GH¢60cedis, now we are hearing that we are going to buy it at GH¢68. How do you price your house? What happens simply is your cost is put together and you add your profit margin.

“Everything that you incur is a cost. We used to have these billboards that had these dollar prices but these days you hardly find them. But practically in my office, if you call me and ask about a house, my dollar is on the table. If you ask me the cost of a unit, I’ll quickly multiply the dollar index against the exchange rate of the dollar. That is today, if you are not proactive to seal it off today and you come tomorrow, I’ll have to call you a new price based on the exchange rate,” Amegayibor stated.

He lamented the lack of proactiveness by the government in dealing with the country’s problems, especially issues that affect the growth of businesses.

According to him, “Global issues are happening, the things are not the same. But I don’t seem to see anything that we are doing as a nation to cushion businesses. Every day you wake up, it’s about an increment. One bad news or the other about businesses.”

He said: “I don’t know what the government is doing, it’s like they are just relaxed. So, when you look at the price of cement, for example, cement has tax components. If you cannot do anything to the international market, the tax is yours, you fix the tax in the country. What have you done about the taxes that you’ve slapped on these items that are imported, Nothing?”

Ghana’s leading digital news platform, GhanaWeb, in conjunction with the Korle-Bu Teaching Hospital, is embarking on an aggressive campaign which is geared towards ensuring that parliament passes comprehensive legislation to guide organ harvesting, organ donation, and organ transplantation in the country.

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