Ewells Realty CEO ascribe failure of real estate developers to list on GSE to stringent requirements
Fundamental to the ability of real estate developers to build affordable houses for the larger low-income section of the Ghanaian populace and significantly reduce the over 2 million housing deficit in the country, is the access to patient capital by estate developers.
Access to patient capital by estate developers is critical as it will enable developers build and sell houses to Ghanaians at affordable prices with long-term repayment periods.
Sources of patient capital are not many with one of the most common source being the stock market where companies can raise funds to finance business expansion mainly through shares floating and bonds in the Over-The-Counter (OTC) market.
However, in Ghana, access to such patient capital by real estate developers and at large real estate agencies is almost impossible.
This, according to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ewells Realty, Hanna Atiase, speaking to norvanreports in an exclusive interview, is due to the inability of real estate developers to meet the ‘stringent’ listing requirements of the Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) – an assertion corroborated by the Executive Director of the Ghana Real Estate Developers Association (GREDA), Sammy Amegayibor.
Listing requirements for shares on the GSE as published on its website include:
- Minimum Stated Capital: It must have a stated capital after the public floatation of at least GHc1million in the case of an application relating to the First Official List.
- Minimum Public Float: Shares issued to the public must not be less than twenty-five per cent (25%) of the number of issued shares of the company.
- Payment of Shares: Shares must be fully paid for: Except in very exceptional circumstances, the Exchange will refuse listing in respect of partly paid shares.
- Spread of Shares: The spread of shareholders existing at the close of an offer should be in the GSE’s opinion adequate with at least 100 shareholders after the public offer for the Main Board.
This is in addition to submission of quarterly financial reports to the Exchange.
Ewells Realty, Ms Atiase noted in the interview, is however, looking to list on the Exchange in the coming years.
“But at Ewells Realty, we are looking to hopefully list on the GSE in some few years to come,” she told norvanreports.
Describing what passes for an affordable house in the country, Ms Atiase noted that, houses that cost under GHS 800,000 can be classified as affordable houses.
Adding that, the affordability of a house is mainly dependent on an individual’s income.
“When we talk about affordable housing, we take several things into consideration. First, we look at the person’s income and then we look at the price of the property.
“So we use what we call the price to income metric and that will determine whether this house falls into the category of an affordable house or not.
“But looking at the figures, I would say an affordable house is anywhere from GHS 100,000 to about GHS 800,000 depending on whether it’s a two, three or four bedroom house,” she added.
Hanna Atiase is the founder of E. Wells Realty & Consultancy and also a co-founder and member of the Ghana Association of Real Estate Brokers (GAREB). An association that was set up to help sanitise the real estate sector.
She is the winner of the prestigious Ghana Industry CEO Award for the Most Respected CEO in the real estate agency sector.
Ms Atiase was featured on BBC World News where she spoke about the real estate investment opportunities in Ghana. She is one of the real estate educational speakers on Meqasa TV and is a highly sought after speaker at real estate-related events.
About Ewells Realty
E. Wells Realty & Consultancy, is a Ghanaian-owned luxury real estate firm. The firm is situated in East Legon.
The firm’s services include sales, rentals, property management, real estate training and advisory services. The firm has a vast portfolio of residential & commercial properties.
At the moment, Ewells Realty is undertaking an Affordable Luxury Housing Marketing Campaign in the country.
E. Wells Realty has partnered with a local developer who builds beautiful homes in gated communities at incredibly discounted prices!
- 2 bedroom house 400,000ghs
- 3 bedroom detached townhouse 560,000ghs
- 3 bedroom detached townhouse 640,000ghs (extended)
- 4 bedroom detached townhouse 840,000ghs
East Legon Hills and Ayi Mensah developments are currently on the market. These gated communities are equipped with 24 hour security services, a gym, pool, children’s play area, pharmacy and a mini mart with groceries delivered to your doorstep.
For more information on these affordable luxury homes please contact E. Wells Realty.
Hanna Atiase
050 158 0464/054 216 1349/054 722 1930
