Purpose: This paper aims to examine the awareness and utilisation of building information modelling (BIM) for facility management (FM) among FM companies in Lagos, Nigeria. This was with a view of increasing the awareness level and promoting adoption of BIM in FM practice. Design/methodology/approach: Primary data used for the study were sourced through questionnaire administered on the 37 FM companies that are corporate members of International Facility Management Association in Lagos, Nigeria. Frequency distribution and relative significance index were used for data analysis. Findings: Findings of the study suggest a low level of awareness and adoption of BIM for FM in the study area. Only 2 of the 31 FM companies surveyed were using BIM for their FM services. Also, the majority of the respondents (n = 22, 71 per cent) perceived that the awareness of BIM in the facilities management industry in Nigeria is very low. Practical implications: The findings of this study provided industry stakeholders with information on the level of awareness and utilisation of BIM for FM practice in Nigeria, thereby giving insights on the possible integration of BIM with FM practices in developing countries. Originality/value: The paper is a pioneer research on the awareness and utilisation of BIM for facilities management from the perspective of an emerging property market like Nigeria.

With a focus on Lagos property market, the purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that influence accessibility to data for valuation and investment analysis in Nigeria. This was with a view to improving accessibility to property data in the market, thereby enhancing investment appraisal practice. Primary data utilized for the study were sourced through the use of questionnaire administered on property practitioners (referred to as estate surveying and valuation (ESV) firms) in Lagos property market. A total of 190 ESV firms were selected using stratified random sampling based on their geographical location. Relative significance index (RSI), frequency distribution and principal component analysis (PCA) were employed for data analysis. A total of 19 factors were identified as affecting accessibility to data. Confidentiality attached to property data by practitioners was ranked as the most significant factor with RSI of 0.81. The next three factors were lack of cooperation within members of professional body (0.79), accuracy of data (0.76) and duty of care to client (0.75), while the least ranked factor was duplication of data set (0.63). All the 19 variables were further grouped into six principal factors using PCA, namely, economic, attitudinal, ethical, legal, administrative and technical factors; with each factor explaining the following variance, 16.75, 16.1, 13.64, 12.78, 10.51 and 7.95, respectively. The paper’s results will enable stakeholders to address the challenges to data accessibility in Lagos property market and similar opaque markets elsewhere thereby enhancing property data accessibility and investment analysis. The paper is an attempt to examine the factors affecting accessibility to data identified in different studies holistically together in a single study and from the perspective of an emerging property market like Nigeria.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the of characteristics of Lagos, Nigeria property market and its submarkets on the prism of the market practitioners’ characteristics, market transaction structure and market maturity. This is done with a view to provide information capable of improving the flow of foreign real estate investment to the Lagos property market.Design/methodology/approach: Primary data were sourced through questionnaire administered on firms of property practitioners in the market. A total of 190 firms were selected using the stratified random sampling technique based on their geographical location. Descriptive statistics and Mann−Whitney U Test were employed for data analysis.Findings: The results showed that the Lagos property market was characterised by practitioners whose highest level of education was majorly first degree, and with a mean computer literacy ranking of 3.38 on a five-point Likert scale. Also, major transactions in the market included letting and sales. The market maturity index of the market was 2.95 and therefore adjudged as an emerging market. The analysis also revealed that there was no significant difference in the characteristics of the submarkets.Practical implications: The results of the study are capable of enhancing investment decision in the market.Originality/value: The study differentiates itself from and adds to the previous studies on market characteristics through an examination of the property market on the prism of the market transaction structure, market practitioners’ characteristics and maturity of the market holistically in the context of an African emerging market.

Purpose: The concept of aging-in-place has gained notable significance in the last decade due to a dramatic demographic shift in global population dynamics that have considerably affected the ability of societies to adequately cater for their aging population. This paper examines some of the barriers to aging-in-place in the context of health needs, housing design and the role of retrofitting/smart home technologies in overcoming these barriers.Design/methodology/approach: Using a narrative literature review approach, the authors undertook a comprehensive search of recent relevant literature focusing on five core thematic areas: health and aging, aging in place, barriers to aging in place, retrofitting and smart home technologies for successful aging in place. The authors entered appropriate keywords into interdisciplinary research databases and synthesized a coherent narrative discussing the thematic areas using the data extracted from the literature search.Findings: There is a bidirectional relationship between aging and the home environment. Barriers to aging-in-place are mainly related to progressive decline in health, which alters the environmental needs of individuals. Appropriate building designs can significantly facilitate aging-in-place. The authors, therefore, highlight the role of retrofitting and smart home technologies as practical solutions to the challenges of the aging-in-place.Practical implications: Forward planning in building design is essential to guarantee that the home environment is well adapted for the challenges of aging-in-place while also promoting healthy aging.Originality/value: The paper shows the relationship between aging and the home environment and how building design considerations could enhance healthy aging-in-place.

Purpose: Earlier studies have suggested the creation of a central database of concluded property transactions as a panacea to the property data debacle. It is in this regard that the purpose of this paper is to examine the perception of potential users of centralised property database on the consideration for the design and management of such database.Design/methodology/approach: Questionnaires were administered on 190 property practitioners (referred as estate surveying and valuation firms) in Lagos property market. Frequency index, frequency distribution and percentage were employed for data analysis.Findings: The result showed that respondents preferred a web-based databank and free access to the information in the databank by those who recorded their market data in it. They also preferred uniform recording standard in the databank, an interface that must be user friendly and secure to prevent unauthorised user from gaining access, amongst others. The practitioners also preferred that their professional body manage the databank when it is created.Practical implications: The paper provides useful insights into creating a property database that will improve accessibility to property data in opaque markets.Originality/value: There is still little or no empirical research on framework/end-users’ requirements for the creation of property transaction database in emerging property markets.

Purpose: The Customary Land Delivery Institutions (CLDIs) provide the platform for the supply of developable land in most cities in sub-Saharan African countries. While there is a need to measure the effectiveness of CLDIs to compare their performance with others or themselves over time, there is however a dearth of evidence-based frameworks that could be adopted for such an assessment. This study developed a framework for the evaluation of the effectiveness of CLDIs. This is with a view to providing a tool for measuring the performance of land governance.Design/methodology/approach: A total of 46 good governance criteria for measuring the various dimensions of CLDIs generated from the literature were transformed into a measurable scale which was validated by a panel of 16 experts through a modified Delphi approach. A pilot study was also conducted on 42 land-based professionals to assess the reliability of the framework. Content Validity Index (CVI) was calculated for relevancy scores while clarity was measured by clarity score. Cronbach alpha was also employed to measure the reliability of the framework.Findings: The result of the 46 criteria validated by the experts revealed that 89.5% of items in the developed instrument have a content validity index (I-CVI) equal to or greater than the 0.85 threshold and a mean I-CVI of 0.90. With the CVI score and the analysis of the comments made by the experts, six items were removed from the instrument and a total of six new items were added. The final corrected instrument after a further iteration had a total of 46 items. The reliability test also revealed a Cronbach alpha score of 0.82.Research limitations/implications: This paper provides a framework useful for developing countries, especially in the development of land delivery policies and provides a framework for the analysis of the important aspects thereof.Originality/value: This paper demonstrates the development of a holistic framework for the assessment of CLDIs which hitherto were not in existence.