Nigeria’s five Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) have a combined market capitalisation of about $230 million within Africa’s estimated $30 billion REIT market.
This is according to the Africa Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) Report by Fortren & Company, which examines REIT markets in South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya, Morocco, Egypt, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Ghana.
The report identifies Nigeria as an emerging REIT market, although its market remains considerably smaller than South Africa’s, which accounts for about 92% of Africa’s total REIT market value.
Nigeria’s REIT market has operated since 2008, when the country established its REIT framework, but the sector remains relatively small compared with South Africa’s market. Nigeria currently has five REITs, with a combined market capitalisation of about $230 million.
The market was initially dominated by UPDC REIT, SFS REIT and UHREIT before Chapel Hill Denham NREIT and the MOFI Real Estate Investment Fund entered the market in 2025.
Africa has 49 operational REITs with an estimated market value of $30 billion and listed market capitalisation of about $21 billion, according to the report. South Africa dominates with more than $27 billion, accounting for about 92% of the continent’s REIT market.
Fortren & Company attributes South Africa’s lead to deeper capital markets, stronger institutional participation, better liquidity and stronger regulatory and corporate governance frameworks.
The report identifies institutional participation as an important factor affecting the development of Nigeria’s REIT market.
High-net-worth individuals remain an important source of capital in frontier markets such as Nigeria, Kenya and Zimbabwe.
Nigeria’s real estate funds recorded mixed performance in 2025, with a few large funds accounting for most of the sector’s assets. Data from official mutual fund records as of December 24, 2025, showed that REITs had a combined net asset value of N483.06 billion, representing 6.30% of Nigeria’s N7.67 trillion mutual fund industry.
The figures show a sector dominated by a few large funds, while smaller REITs compete more on yield than scale.
Nairametrics had earlier reported that Nigeria’s REIT market requires stronger pension fund participation to attract long-term institutional capital.
He also said passive participation by Nigerian REIT operators limits market expansion because some institutional-grade properties remain privately held.
Akinsomi suggested that Nigerian REIT operators diversify into sectors with stable cash flows, including healthcare facilities, student accommodation and logistics.
