Awakening affordable housing in Africa with financial innovation

Mortgages are one of the fastest-growing segments in African retail banking with an estimated CAGR of 6% between 2017 and 2022. But many Africans do not qualify for mortgages or cannot afford interest rates that average 14% in sub-Saharan Africa. Lenders are also cautious about offering long-term credit to the 81% of Africans in informal employment and are sensitive to macroeconomic factors and availability of housing stock. Financial innovations – such as rent-to-own models, housing microfinance, and mortgage-backed securities – are touted to make housing credit more accessible. But how can such models be leveraged at scale? And might so-called ‘green mortgages’ for environmentally certified developments steer housing finance in a sustainable direction? Leaders in the financial community explore innovations that could pump life into inclusive housing finance in Africa.

Key points

• Assessing unmet finance needs – the constraints of customers and lenders 
• Scaling innovation – the possibilities in rent-to-own, capital markets and microfinance
• Pulling in a sustainable direction – incentivising loans for affordable green homes