PenCom disburses ₦3.1 billion to 187 contributors to own their homes

The ₦3.1 billion disbursed to the applicants represents 25% of their Retirement Savings Account (RSA) balance required for residential mortgage payment as stipulated by the Pension Reform Act (PRA) 2014.

This was disclosed by the Chief Executive Officer, Pension Fund Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOP), Oguche Aguda, while delivering a paper titled 'Improving Accessibility and Service Delivery in RSA Mortgage Financing' during the 2023 media conference organised by PenCom in Lagos.

On what RSA holders should know about the Pension Mortgage Guidelines, he said, "Anyone with an RSA account or Micro Pension Plan (MPP), provided they are in employment or self-employed, are eligible to apply for their pension to be used to acquire a home.

"You can also apply as long as you have at least three years to retirement. Married couples can apply but have to be individually eligible. For those who have been making voluntary contributions, they can use some or all of the contingent portion of their voluntary contributions to shore up what is needed to make up equity contribution for your residential mortgage."

In 2014, the PRA was amended to allow Nigerian workers who were contributors to the scheme, gain access to 25% of their RSA balance as down payment for mortgages. 

PenCom followed up by releasing the guidelines on accessing RSAs in September 2022 in line with Section 89 (2) of the PRA 2014.

According to Aguda, Nigeria’s housing deficit has witnessed a rapid increase from seven million in 1991 to 28 million in 2023. The absence of a standard or a national homeownership model has made the homeownership rate estimated at 9% of the population, one of the lowest in the world.