The Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) has launched a lease-to-own housing finance scheme to provide eligible National Housing Fund (NHF) contributors an alternate path to homeownership.
The financial institution disclosed this in an announcement issued by its Group Head of Corporate Communications, Joe Abuku, following the launch of the non-interest mortgage product in Kano State on Tuesday, October 27, 2026.
Known as Ijarah Muntahia Bittamleek, the scheme permits beneficiaries to occupy houses by way of a lease association earlier than possession is transferred, topic to agreed phrases and the fulfilment of contractual obligations.
FMBN launches lease-to-own mortgage scheme
FMBN Managing Director and Chief Executive, Shehu Usman Osidi, mentioned the non-interest mortgage product was developed to accommodate eligible NHF contributors searching for a substitute for standard interest-based mortgage financing.
The initiative is meant to broaden housing finance choices, deepen monetary inclusion and make homeownership extra accessible to Nigerians with completely different housing wants. Osidi additionally pressured that the scheme was not restricted to any spiritual group or geographical location however was open to eligible NHF contributors throughout the nation.
The financial institution mentioned in its assertion:
- “The Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) has launched its Non-Interest Mortgage Product, Ijarah Muntahia Bittamleek (Lease-to-Own), to expand access to housing finance and provide eligible contributors to the National Housing Fund (NHF) Scheme with an alternative pathway to homeownership,” the assertion learn partially.
- At the launch, the Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Muttaqha Rabe Darma, urged the financial institution to make the product simple to entry, with easy utility procedures, quicker processing and clear transactions.
He mentioned the scheme’s success must be measured by the variety of Nigerians who finally turn into householders, relatively than the launch itself. Darma additionally referred to as on FMBN to increase the initiative past Kano to Lagos, Port Harcourt, Enugu, Ibadan, Maiduguri, Sokoto and Abuja.
FMBN arms over first lease-to-own houses in Kano
As a part of the launch, FMBN commissioned the FMBN-Ijarah-01 Estate in Bichi, Kano State, and handed over keys to the primary beneficiaries beneath the pilot challenge.
Developed by AYAB Construction Company, the property includes two- and three-bedroom bungalows supported by infrastructure and important services.
Darma commissioned the property and offered the keys to beneficiaries, describing the event for instance of the necessity to translate housing insurance policies into accomplished houses that Nigerians can occupy.
The pilot property options two- and three-bedroom bungalows.
The minister urged informal-sector staff, market merchants, artisans and transport staff to register with the NHF Scheme and make common contributions to qualify for housing finance alternatives.
Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, represented by the state’s Commissioner for Housing, Ibrahim Yakubu Adamu, described the launch as a milestone for the nation’s housing finance sector and pledged the state authorities’s assist for FMBN’s housing supply efforts.
The financial institution’s assertion didn’t specify the lease-to-own product’s financing prices, compensation period, property costs, eligibility thresholds or the variety of beneficiaries coated by the pilot.
FMBN accredited N208 billion in housing loans
The new product follows FMBN’s broader efforts to broaden housing finance. Nairametrics earlier reported that the financial institution accredited greater than N208 billion in housing and mortgage loans in 2025, whereas disbursements exceeded N120 billion for housing building, mortgage financing, dwelling renovation and different housing-related initiatives.
Osidi disclosed the figures on October 19, 2026, throughout the commemoration of World Habitat Day and World Cities Day in Abuja. He mentioned the financial institution financed 6,911 inexpensive housing items in 2025, attaining roughly 96% of its annual goal of seven,200 items beneath the Presidential and Ministerial Deliverables.
The figures present context for the financial institution’s newest product launch because it seeks to supply eligible contributors extra methods to finance homeownership.
FMBN expands housing finance choices
The lease-to-own scheme follows FMBN’s launch of the Diaspora National Housing Fund Mortgage Loan in London on August 7, 2026. That product was launched to assist eligible Nigerians residing overseas finance residential property purchases in Nigeria.
Under the diaspora mortgage scheme, eligible contributors can entry loans of as much as N100 million at an annual rate of interest of 9%, with a most compensation interval of 10 years. Applicants can full registration and Know Your Customer necessities electronically and make the required contributions remotely, topic to the financial institution’s eligibility and affordability assessments.
Before the launch of the non-interest mortgage product, Osidi had additionally introduced plans to introduce the scheme and a lease help programme for federal civil servants earlier than the tip of October 2026.
The lease-to-own product has now been launched, including an alternative choice for eligible NHF contributors. Its attain will rely on the scheme’s phrases, affordability and implementation, in addition to FMBN’s potential to increase entry past the preliminary pilot property in Kano.
