A new partnership between Ecobank Rwanda Plc and Fortis Green Housing is expected to make homeownership more accessible by combining mortgage financing with sustainably built homes in Kigali's growing Masaka area.
The two institutions signed a Mortgage Financing Scheme Partnership Agreement on Friday, August 14, at Ecobank Rwanda's head office in Kigali.
Under the agreement, qualifying buyers of homes in Fortis Green Housing's Masaka Views Project can access Ecobank mortgages covering up to 90 per cent of the cost of a house, with financing of up to Rwf1 billion, a repayment period of up to 20 years and a discounted interest rate, subject to credit assessment and lending requirements.
Also read: Ecobank Rwanda shakes up lending with up to Rwf60m collateral-free loan offer
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Carine Umutoni, the Managing Director of Ecobank Rwanda Plc, said the partnership responds to the housing needs of families while helping them achieve a major financial milestone.
"We know that acquiring a home is a very big milestone for a family and we want to be part of that dream for our communities to really provide stability to people's family and the community overall."
Eco-friendly homes get preferential financing
The agreement follows an assessment by Ecobank of the Masaka Views development, including the properties, their value, location, infrastructure and construction standards.
Umutoni said the homes' eco-friendly design and planned infrastructure helped the bank decide to offer concessionary financing.
"We have given concession rate for this project for people wanting to own houses for this project mostly because of the eco-friendly nature of the houses," she said.
Also, we believe purchasing a newly built home comes with many advantages, from modern designs to quality construction and greater peace of mind. This is even more meaningful when customers choose a developer like Fortis Green Housing, whose experience and commitment to high standards give buyers confidence that they are investing in a well-built, quality home."added
Prospective buyers can also seek a pre-appraisal from Ecobank before purchasing a home to establish their financing eligibility. Once a complete mortgage application meets the bank's documentation and credit requirements, the bank said it will process it within a short timeframe.
Also read: Fortis Green launches its first eco-housing estate in Rwanda
Masaka Views targets buyers, renters
Masaka Views is Fortis Green Housing's first real estate development in Rwanda. The seven-hectare project in Ganza Village, Cyimo Cell, Masaka Sector, Kicukiro District, comprises 400 units to be developed in three phases.
The first phase project includes 35 single-family homes, 57 townhouses and 88 apartments. The houses and townhouses are for sale, while the apartments will be retained by Fortis Green for rental.
This first phase comprises 88 rental apartments and 92 homes and townhouses for sale. The developer has already built 44 of the homes, with the units expected to be ready for occupation soon.
The project is designed around green-building principles, using sustainable materials and practices intended to reduce carbon emissions, water consumption and electricity use. The buildings are planned to meet Excellence in Design for Greater Efficiencies (EDGE) certification, an international green-building standard developed by the International Finance Corporation (IFC).
Also read: Explainer: Eight features that characterise a green home
Jonathan Everett Shafer, Managing Director of Fortis Green Housing, said the company sees housing as essential infrastructure and aims to create communities rather than simply build houses.
"As we think about Fortis Green Housing, we are not just building a house, we are not just building apartments, in our mind we are building a community."
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The developer said it used market research and customer feedback to shape the homes and facilities. Shafer said the decision to initially build a limited number of homes was intended to allow the company to learn from buyers.
"And so, that is one of the reasons why we have built 44 homes first. We have 48 more to be built for sale in this phase. And not that we will change everything about the homes, but we are actively listening to what customers are telling us,"
"This is not just a transaction; this is actually a relationship that we are forming with our clients."
The partnership's green focus also aligns with Ecobank Group's wider sustainability strategy. In July, the group marked the listing of its $450 million sustainability-linked bond on the London Stock Exchange, a landmark transaction that became the world's first International Capital Market Association (ICMA)-designated Nature Bond issued by a commercial bank, which Umutoni said supports its broader sustainability ambitions across Africa.
