Analysing the Relationship Between Property Market Transparency and Foreign Real Estate Investment in Nigeria

This study analyses the relationship between real estate market transparency and foreign direct investment flows into Nigeria's property sector, examining whether measured improvements in market transparency attract international institutional capital and how Nigeria's transparency position relative to comparable emerging markets affects investment attractiveness. Foreign institutional capital can play a critical role in financing large-scale real estate development, but it is highly sensitive to market transparency, governance standards, and investment certainty, which Nigerian markets have historically struggled to demonstrate. The study draws on the JLL Global Real Estate Transparency Index scores and their sub-components for Nigeria, South Africa, Kenya, and Ghana as a comparative framework. Primary data from structured interviews with 20 international real estate investors and fund managers who have considered or made Nigerian property investments, and 15 Nigerian real estate professionals with international capital marketing experience, provide qualitative depth. Econometric analysis uses a regression framework examining the relationship between transparency indicator sub-scores and foreign investment inflows at the sub-sector level. Results indicate that property rights security, data availability on market fundamentals, and regulatory environment sub-scores are the strongest predictors of international investment interest in Nigerian real estate. Nigeria's transparency score improvements between 2018 and 2022 are associated with modest but positive changes in international investor interest. The study identifies specific transparency reforms with the highest potential to accelerate foreign capital attraction. Recommendations include mandatory transaction price reporting, a national property market data platform, and international-standard REITs regulation. Keywords: real estate transparency, foreign investment, emerging market, property market, Nigeria.