AN ASSESSMENT OF THE IMPACT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
ON RENTAL VENUE OF RESIDENTIAL PROPERTIES IN NASARAWA
ABSTRACT
The aim of this project is to assess the impact of
environmental qualities on rental value of residential properties in Nasarawa.
The specific objectives are as followings: identify the various environmental
problems common in residential neighbourhood in Nasarawa, evaluate the
relationship between environmental qualities and rental value of residential
property and ascertain residents rating of environmental qualities in Nasarawa,
examine the impact of environmental qualities on rental value of residential
property. The research method used was survey The sampling techniques adopted
for this study is the random sampling techniques, the techniques give every
member of the population the opportunity to be selected without any form of
preferential treatment. A total of one hundred (100) copies of questionnaires
were administered, and out of these, seventy five (75) copies of the questionnaires
were correctly filled and returned. The
researcher make use of statistical tools such as tables, percentage and
descriptive methods to presents and
analyzed the data gathered from the field survey which was considered
appropriate for the research. The study revealed that the problems common in
residential neighbourhood in Nasarawa is inadequate basic services such
portable water, constant electricity supply, good and affordable health care
etc, substandard housing this is evident in the presence of squatter and slum
settlement, irregular and informal settlement, finally poverty and social
exclusion contributes tremendously to the environmental problems. Finally, the
study revealed that environmental qualities affects rental value of residential
property in Nasarawa. The researcher recommend that the government should make
concerted effort in providing the basic social amenities in Nasarawa to reduce
the environmental problems encountered and the development control should
ensure that development control laws are fully enforced to avert the problem
squatter, slum, irregular and informal settlement.
CHAPTER
ONE
1.0 INTRODUCTION
1.1
BACKGROUND
OF THE STUDY
Environmental qualities are largely
responsible for neighbourhood attributes on real estate values. Man’s attitude
towards the surrounding environment is not neutral because human search for
location that deliver a high quality of life (Mchi, 2013). Those expectations particularly
concern man’s daily surrounding including residential area or recreation
ground. The qualities of that environment largely affect the decision made on
real estate market value.
Environmental qualities are numerous and its’ effect
are in various ways, such as physical and socio-economic obsolescence and
environmental problem and a host of others have their consequence on human. The
problem of environmental and efforts directly towards their alleviation command
global attention because of the increasing proportion of the world population
being affected by such issues whether or not; we have face an environmental
crisis “It is the subject of much debate those days some argue that our
environmental problem are neither unprecedented nor over-whelming. The role of
environment in assimilating waste products and providing life-support amenities
will become increasingly important. Protection and conservation of key natural
systems and important ecological functions will essentially, not only in terms
of their value and in terms of recreation but also because these systems and
functions may provide invaluable support and protection for economic activity
and human welfare. But little is known about the role of environment in recent
years there is growing recognition that efficient and sustainable management of
environmental resources is indeed critical to economic development (VanKamp,
2003).
Neighbourhood,
on the other hand is important due to its spatial linkage to the housing
purchase and real estate in general. Once settled in a location, one is subject
to the externalities that neighbourhood effects impose. Neighbourhoods are geographic
units within which certain social relationships exist, although the intensity
of these relationships and their importance in the lives of residents vary tremendously.
Initially the neighbourhood unit was both a social and planning concept. On one
hand, it had to provide convenience and comfort and direct, face-to-face
contact in order to restore some sense of community that has been disturbed or
destroyed by the specialization and segmentation of urban life. On the other
hand, it was to constitute a special sub-part of a larger, more complex totality.
Environmental qualities matter to human life as they
play role in assimilating waste products and providing life support amenities
such as forests provide fresh air, water catchments Areas and prevention of
soil erosion (Turner 1995). Despite the essential role played by environment
resources in developing countries little is known about the economic
development (Turner, 1995). Furthermore little is known about the impacts of
markets forces and policy interventions on environmental management and
environmental effects of development and programmes. Research in all these
areas is proceeding, but progress remains slow given the complexity of the
problems and our failure to address them adequately in the past (Turner, 1995).
Development of industries and increased human population has greatly led to
environment deterioration, which in turn affects the quality and property value
of settlements (Turner, 1995). The Nigeria population is growing at the rate of
approximately eight percent per annum, it is estimated that about 70 percent of
populations live in poor, unplanned settlements (http:web.mit.edu/ urbanupgrading)
Until mid- 1990 the overall urban environment had deteriorated to the extent
that less than 5 percent of solid and liquid waste was collected (Nkya 2001)
Lack of knowledge of the people towards the importance of environmental
quality, has lead to deterioration of the environment to such an extent that in
some it has decreased property values and rents of houses.
According
to Norman (1982), physical attributes and locational influences can be
described as “Fundamental factors” of the property because all users of such
property get utility or disutility from these fundamental factors over their
expected tenure. While physical attributes include building area, type of
structure and all that is attached thereof, locational influences are off-site
neighbourhood attributes like healthcare facilities, parks, schools etc.
Therefore real estate value will be locational dependent due to the attributes
with respect to specific desirable services. Since locational influences on the
value of residential property can come up from a number of sources such as
accessibility to shopping centre, air quality, drainage system availability,
pollution, noise, security, and availability of refuse disposal facilities etc.
This research work examined the effect of environmental quality and
neighbourhood attributes on real estate value.
1.2. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM
Most Nigeria‘s major cities have been experiencing rapid
urbanization and rapid development due to urban-urban or rural urban migration
which have resulted in the failure of urban infrastructure and services have
failed to keep pace with this growth. In addition to rising urban poverty,
there is an increased urban environmental problems. These challenges are poor
solid waste management, uncontrolled housing and neighbourhood development,
flooding, traffic congestion, poor state of the urban physical environment and
rising crime rates have been documented (Ugwuorah, 2002; Mchi, 1997). Obinna,
Owei and Mark (2010) have also noted the deplorable housing, inadequate space,
and absence of basic services in the informal settlements of the city. This
state of affairs triggered the desire to carry out an assessment of the impact
of environmental quality on rental value
of residential property in Nasarawa.
1.3
AIM AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The aim of this project is to assess the impact of environmental quality on rental value
of residential property in Nasarawa
The specific objectives are as followings:
i.
To
identify the various environmental problems common in residential neighbourhood
in Nasarawa
ii.
To
evaluate the relationship between neighbourhood attributes and residential
property values.
iii.
To
ascertain residents rating of environmental qualities in Nasarawa
iv.
To
examine the impact of environmental qualities on rental value of residential
property in the study area
1.4 RESEARCH QUESTIONS
i.
What
are the various environmental problems common in residential neighbourhood in Nasarawa?
ii.
What
are the relationship between neighbourhood attributes and residential property
value?
iii.
How
do the residents rate environmental qualities in Nasarawa?
iv.
What
are the impacts of environmental qualities on rental value of residential
property in the study area?
1.5 HYPOTHESIS
H0:
Environmental qualities have no significant impact on rental value of residential
property in Nasarawa
H1:
Environmental qualities have significant effect on rental value of residential
property in Nasarawa
1.6 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
This
study assessed the impact of environmental quality on rental value of residential property. The management of the
environments and neighbourhood is the collective responsibilities of both the
government at all levels and the property owners, thus this study would be
utilized by the government at both federal, state and local government through
their various ministries or agencies such as the ministry of environment,
education, health and information as it will impact on them the relevance of
maintaining a good and quality environments. The study will be also be
beneficial to these ministries in the area of policy formulation and
formulating laws that will promote good environment and neighbourhood which
will be beneficial to human health and protect
the environment.
The
citizenry, estate valuers and managers and professionals in real estate sector
will also benefit greatly from this study, as the study will reveal how a
person’s carefree attitude about the environment can be costly not only to
himself but to others. Non-governmental organization in the areas of health and
environment will also benefit from the result of this study. This study will
guide them in the areas production and distribution of educational materials to
the public to enlighten them about the effects of environmental quality with
regards to its impact on property rental value.
The
information will go along way in helping other research in the field as it will
contribute to available literatures on environmental quality.
1.7 SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY
The study
is delimited to the assessment of the impact of environmental quality on rental
value of residential property. The study intends to investigate the
environmental quality, and the relationship between neighbourhood quality and residential
property values. The geographical scope of the study is Nasarawa town, Nasarawa
state.
1.8 OPERATIONAL DEFINITION OF TERMS
Environment:
The sum total of all surroundings of
a living organism, including natural forces and other living things, which
provide conditions for development and growth as well as of danger and damage.
Environmental
Quality: Environmental quality
is a set of properties and characteristics of the environment, either generalized or local, as they impinge on human
beings and other organisms. It is a measure of the condition of an environment relative to the
requirements of one or more species, any human need or purpose.
Neighbourhood: A neighbourhood is a geographically
localised community within a larger city, town, suburb or rural area. Neighbourhoods are often social
communities with considerable face-to-face interaction among members.
Attributes:
A characteristic or feature of a product that is thought to
appeal to customers.
Property Value: property value according to
Millington (2017) is the money obtainable from a person willing and able to
purchase property when it is offered for sale by a willing seller, allowing for
reasonable time for negotiation and with the full knowledge of the nature and
uses which the property is capable of
being put.
1.9 THE STUDY AREA
Nasarawa Emirate in
Nasarawa State is located in the Central region of Nigeria. It is flanked by
Keffi and the Federal Capital to the North. To the South, it is bounded by
Benue River and to the west; it bordered the present Gadabuka and Toto Local
government area which are of course, part of the Emirate. To the East, it is
bordered by Doma, Lafia and Keana Local Government Areas all of Nasarawa State.
Physical Characteristics: The major things considered under physical
characteristics of Nasarawa are, geographical location, temperature, rainfall,
geology, wind, vegetation, humidity, soil.
Temperature: The temperatures are generally high during
the day, particularly between the months of March and April. The main monthly
temperatures in the state range between 200C and 340C
with the hottest months being March/April and the coolest months being
December/January.
Rainfall: The study area experience dry season without or little’s
rainfall from November to March of about 95mm, which is wet season is from
April to October of about 1.30mm,
Geology: From the Jos Plateau, this comprises of basement complex
metamorphic rocks, granite and basalt of two or more ages. The basement complex
is covered by shadow soil.
Wind: Nasarawa local government is determined by the seasonal movement on
inter-tropical convergence zone [ITCZ], which represents the moving frontier
between the moist Atlantic air from the south and the dry air from the north.
In the dry season from November till March the north east wind are dominant.
For the remaining of the year, the south-western winds are prevailing. Generally,
the wind velocity is relatively low.
Vegetation: Nasarawa is situated in the Benue valley
between the Benue river and Jos Plateau. This area lies within the part of
southern guinea savannah. The vegetation of Nasarawa has, to a large extent
resulted from extensive agricultural use of the land, the predominant
vegetation type is partly savannah which is characterized by a discontinuous
canopy, shrubs and grasses many areas are affected by man through bush burning
during the dry season. Among the common trees are oil bean trees, locust bean
free and isoberline trees.
Relative Humidity: The relative humidity is the measurement of
deepness of the atmosphere which varies from place to place and different time
of the day. The level of humidity in Nasarawa state in January is quite less
that 40% which rises as from February to July to about 88%. By April when the
steady rain commences it will be about 75% by August when the inter-tropical
discontinuity is at it northern part, most position of the entire state will
experience tropical marine wind and continues till December.
Soil: The major soil units of Nasarawa belong to the category of oxisols or
tropical ferruginous soils. The soils are derived mainly from the basement
complex and old sedimentary rocks. Lateritic crust occurs in extensive areas on
the plains while hydro orphic soils (limbic incept sols) occur along the flood
plains of major rivers (Nyangba, 1995).
Socio-Economic Characteristics: Nasarawa main economic activity is agriculture; cash crop, such as yam,
cassava and egusi (melon). Production of minerals such as salt is also another
main economic activity of people in the state; Nasarawa produces a large
proportion of the salt consumed in the country.
