Building materials traders in Abuja have expressed concern over the high cost of building materials that has led to low patronage.

In separate interviews on Sunday, the traders attributed the high cost of building materials to the country’s current inflation rate.

Joseph Owuwa, a tiler and trader on doors, said people were no longer building houses because of the cost of materials.

Mr Owuwa said that the high rate of dollars had added to the high cost of these materials that one could hardly afford.

“An average Nigerian struggles with a high standard of living and cannot afford the money to build a house.

“The decline in the number of people building houses has affected the business because of the low purchase rate of these materials,” he said.

Luke Eze, a trader on tiles, said rising inflation led to fluctuating the prices of the materials.

“Currently, we sell floor tiles (40×40) for N2,500 per metre, as against N1, 800 per metre, which was sold last year. The price increase is also dependent on the measurements and type,” he said.

Chimeze Ndubueze, a paint seller at Dei-Dei market, said as long as dollars continued to increase, prices of building materials would increase.

Mr Ndubueze listed other factors that contributed to the increase in materials, including fuel, transportation and taxes.

He said since the rate at which people built houses had reduced, the demand for materials had also reduced.

Chukwuma Obianumba, a block trader, said even with the challenging economic situation, Nigerians were still building houses but opted for less expensive materials.

“Some civil engineers or builders produce blocks themselves rather than buy from block industries to reduce costs,” he said.

(NAN)