I was fortunate enough to get the scoop on a prime piece of real estate that should appeal to big-money investors, especially those who are familiar with the student hostel scene in Ghana. A few years ago a friend of mine – Joe Tetteh, owner of JoeTex Group (formerly JoeTex Farms) – began building a very large hostel in Somanya. The structure is within direct walking distance of the newly-minted University of Environment and Sustainable Development (UESD). As shown below, you can even see UESD from (the upper storeys) of the hostel.
Short-term housing is a booming market in Ghana, and this is especially true when you’re dealing with the likes of student populations. In fact, one (smaller) hostel has already been erected near the university, and quite a few more in the area will undoubtedly follow.
LOCATION OF THE HOSTEL
Since beginning this project, JoeTex Group has decided to engage discussions with parties interested in purchasing the hostel. The site is located on N40, the highway that runs from Adenta (Accra), through Dodowa and into the Eastern Region. N40 is one of the better roads in Ghana, one whose maintenance is taken relatively-seriously. The geographic coordinates of the site are 6° 2’46.50″N, 0° 0’27.16″W, and its GhanaPost GPS address is EY-0361-3279.
A few years back, this area was pretty much all bush. Somanya, especially outside of the town proper, is a very green, beautiful locality. Even now, the area is more or less dominated by mango farms (as shown below, via pics taken on the roof of the hostel). But recently, the government decided to erect UESD here.
I was living in Somanya when that decision was made, and it was pretty shocking, especially considering how expeditiously they went about bringing it to pass. This part of Somanya is a good place to put a university, since the area is extremely quiet, i.e. conducive to study.
But chances are, now that the university is here, it’s not going to remain that way for long. I recently returned to the area, after spending a couple years away. And I was surprised by how many new structures have seemingly popped up overnight.
For those of us who have lived in developing areas, we’ve seen it all before. Once a bushy locality becomes residentially viable and profitable, all of the surrounding land is swiftly bought up, and the earlier buyers are able to get in, the better. That’s what’s now happening around UESD. For example, the pic below illustrates that a gas (petrol) station is currently under construction, on the main road, near the hostel.
I have a couple of friends who own land here, and one of them was recently telling me how his father was wise to hold onto it, while all of his dad’s homeys have long since sold their own. Again, no one had anticipated that the government would build a university here. So the prediction now is that, within the next 5-10 years, this area will basically develop into a mini-city. In fact, there’s already one major (eco-friendly) residential project being undertaken within the vicinity.
INITIAL ASKING PRICE
JoeTex’s initial asking price for the hostel is USD$2,000,000.00 (Two Million US Dollars). That’s understandable when you take the whole package into consideration.
For instance, the site comes complete with the four acres of roadside land that the hostel is situated on (as pictured above). Unlike most of the area, the mango trees have already been taken down on this land. So that’s a (hefty) preliminary cost the buyer would avoid when they decide to build thereupon.
CONCLUSION
Student hostels near colleges and universities tend to be highly profitable businesses in Ghana. So it’s only a matter of time before a number of such facilities pop up around the University of Environment and Sustainable Development. It remains to be seen if any will be as large or have as ideal positioning as the one JoeTex Group has started. And for whoever does end up buying this property, a good deal of the preparatory work has already been completed.
If you’re interested in additional information pertaining to this site or to schedule a viewing, feel free to contact me (Malcolm), preferably via Whatsapp, at telephone number +233-53-414-9658. The preferred alternative is via Gmail, at email address krobofind@gmail.com. Other means of contacting me are listed here. Thank you for your time.
