Purpose: The study analysed the factors influencing real estate firms' (REFs) decision to adopt virtual reality (VR) technology using the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) method. This was done to enhance the practice of real estate agency in Nigeria.Design/methodology/approach: Data were elicited from eight real estate experts. These experts were heads of the agency department of firms that had been in existence for a minimum of five years in the Lagos property market. The data analysed in this study were collected with the aid of a questionnaire.Findings: The result revealed that use intention was influenced by performance expectancy, effort expectancy, social influence, facilitating conditions, hedonic motivation, price value and UB. Also, facilitating conditions, habit and use intention did not influence use behaviour. Overall, six constructs, which include price value (R_i − C_j value = 0.1284), use behaviour (R_i − C_j value = 0.0666), social influence (R_i − C_j value = 0.0583), facilitating conditions (R_i − C_j value = 0.0323), performance expectancy (R_i − C_j value = 0.0196) and effort expectancy (R_i − C_j value = 0.0116), were significant predictors of the factors influencing the decision of REFs to adopt VR. Of these constructs, the R_i − C_j values indicated that price value had the highest causative influence.Practical implications: The result of this study will bring REFs to the consciousness of the factors that could affect their adoption of VR technology. This study will also assist the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers in appropriately enlightening REFs on the integration of VR technology into the agency practice especially at this time when all health protocols and guidelines need to be observed to help flatten the curve of the Covid-19 pandemic.Originality/value: This study is the first to have an insight into the analysis of the factors influencing REFs' decision to adopt VR technology using the DEMATEL method.

Retrofitting existing residential buildings presents a feasible approach to improving energy efficiency. Therefore, recognising the critical success factors (CSFs) for residential building energy retrofitting (BER) has remained a significant topic in this climate change era. However, given the fragmented nature of past findings, this study reviewed past studies on the CSFs for residential BER. Utilising Arksey and O’Malley’s framework, 138 studies were initially examined, with 33 meeting the inclusion criteria and synthesised according to the PRISMA-ScR guidelines. The review started with a bibliometric analysis, including publication trends, types, geographical focus, etc., and found growing interest in this topic amongst authors in China, Germany, Saudi Arabia, the UK, and Europe. The scoping review results highlight seven overarching themes of CSFs: project-, contract-, stakeholder-, team-, financial-, regulation-, and material/technology-related. Notably, the most emphasised across the studies were stakeholder-, project-, regulation-, and financial-related CSFs. A further review of the included studies revealed that the dominant methods used in past studies were factor analysis, regression analysis, social network analysis (SNA), and structural equation modelling (SEM). This study provides valuable insights for regulatory bodies, construction professionals, project managers, and homeowners seeking to develop customised retrofitting solutions, advancing residential BER research and practice. Further research is suggested to understand how combinations of factors can drive retrofitting success across varied contexts.

Purpose: This study aims to analyse the criteria used in measuring the determinants of the adoption of virtual reality (VR) technology in real estate agency practice in Lagos, with a view to providing information with which the practice can be enhanced.Design/methodology/approach: The data for the study were elicited using a questionnaire which was administered to eight real estate firms (REFs). The firms were those that have been operating in Lagos for at least five years, and the data collected were analysed using the DEMATEL method.Findings: The findings revealed that perceived utility and relative advantage were the most important criteria for determining REFs' performance expectancy with VR technology. The two most important criteria to measure effort expectancy were “perceived ease of use” and complexity. “Subjective norms” was the most important criterion for measuring social influence, while “perceived behavioural control” was the most important criterion to measure facilitating conditions. Under “price value”, output quality was the only significant criterion. Finally, the frequency of use, the actual number of use and the amount of time spent utilising the technology were significant for measuring the REFs' use behaviour.Practical implications: The study offers insights into the criteria that can assist REFs in integrating VR technology into real estate agency practice. The results are also helpful to the Nigerian real estate professional bodies to organise workshop programmes for REFs on the use of VR technology and other disruptive technologies. The results will also serve as a guide for REFs to gain a competitive advantage in this trying time of pandemic and help them measure up to global standards and the expectations of their clients.Originality/value: Before this study, efforts have not been made to study the criteria for measuring the determinants of VR technology adoption in the Nigerian real estate agency practice.

Purpose: Students are the hub of activities in an academic environment, and their satisfaction with the performance of educational facilities cannot be overemphasised. Therefore, this study evaluated the post-occupation of students' halls of residence in Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Nigeria with a view to enhancing effective management of educational facilities.Design/methodology/approach: Data were collected from 245 students who were selected using simple random sampling technique. The study adopted descriptive statistical tools such as mean, standard deviation and Relative Importance Index (RII); the inferential statistical tools adopted were independent-samples t-test and Kendall Tau's correlation.Findings: The results revealed that both genders were fairly satisfied with physical attributes, indoor environmental quality (IEQ) and social factors; while the female students were also fairly satisfied with the supporting service, the male students were fairly dissatisfied. Also, supporting services and IEQ influenced the levels of satisfaction of both genders.Practical implications: This study provides information which can help the management of the University and other comparative educational institutions in the proper management of students' halls of residence.Originality/value: This study has provided insight into the satisfaction of student occupants with halls of residence based on gender differentiation.

Many human activities are carried out in buildings, suggesting that the contribution of buildings to global warming is significant. This study examines the awareness of property managers (estate surveyors and valuers) about the potential benefits of vertical greenery systems (VGSs) on buildings. The questionnaire for the study was administered online to property managers working with registered estate surveying and valuation firms operating in Lagos. On firm basis, a total of 282 property managers working for the firms were considered. Of this total, 127 responded to the questionnaire, but 121 (representing 42.9%) were of use in the analysis of data. The data were analyzed using the fuzzy synthetic evaluation method. The result showed that property managers were generally less aware, with an overall awareness level of 2.60. Further analysis showed that the property managers were less aware of the benefits of VGSs on buildings. The levels of awareness of the property managers about VGSs' environmental benefits, social benefits, and economic benefits are 2.65, 2.58, and 2.53 respectively. We conclude that an improvement in the level of awareness of the property managers would assist in the formulation of policies by the government towards the achievement of SDGs.

There is a growing global interest in making existing buildings more energy-efficient. However, stakeholders seem to have differing views on the matter, especially in developing countries, thus raising the issue of awareness amongst key stakeholders at the operational stage of existing buildings. This study aimed to examine stakeholders’ awareness of the benefits of passive retrofit in residential buildings using a convergent mixed-methods approach. Quantitative data were collected from 118 property managers and 163 owners of residential buildings, and qualitative data were collected from six government officials in Lagos State, Nigeria. The quantitative data collected were analysed using fuzzy synthetic evaluation, which addresses the fuzziness in judgement-making on multi-criteria phenomena. The results revealed that property managers and owners had a moderately high level of awareness of the environmental, economic, and social benefits of the passive retrofitting of residential buildings. However, while property managers generally had a higher level of awareness than owners, a significant gap was found in their awareness of environmental benefits. Conversely, the qualitative analysis results showed that government officials demonstrated a strong awareness of environmental benefits (energy reduction, air quality, and natural lighting) and economic advantages (cost savings and lower implementation costs). In contrast, their awareness of social benefits was limited to health improvements. The findings have practical implications for policy development and awareness campaigns. Building agencies need to further reinforce their targeted awareness programmes for owners, who demonstrated fair awareness of environmental benefits while leveraging the intermediary role of property managers in promoting home retrofit practices. Economic benefits should also be an integral part of policy frameworks to drive wider adoption across all stakeholder groups.