Access to Decent Shelter

Adetola Emmanuel King and his Mission to Give Average Nigerians Access to Decent Shelter

By Ruth Okwumbu

The general thought is that real estate is for the rich – at least, everyone can attest that they are not the cheapest assets to purchase. However, brands like Adron Homes are dedicating their journey to providing affordable real estate properties with flexible and convenient payment plans for the everyday Nigerian. The man at the helm is one with a very long name – Aare Adetola Olaniyi Olaonipekun Emmanuel King.

A native of Ilishan-Remo, Ogun State, Adetola Olaniyi was born in 1975 in Ibadan, Oyo State, Nigeria. After the basic elementary education at Ibadan Municipal Government (IMG) Primary School, Molete, Ibadan, he attended the Federal Government College, Odogbolu and Remo Secondary School, Shagamu, for his secondary education. cases, bridges, as well as a flexible payment system that enables the home owner to pay over a period.

The simplified model for low and middle-income earners allows a flexible payment plan that can run for five and ten years, payable daily, weekly and monthly, and the recurrent payments can even be as low as N1,000 daily. For an environment like Nigeria, where a significant part of the population still grapples with their lowincome earnings and daily wages, there is no doubt that this is a business tailored to the needs of the average everyday Nigerian.

Adron Homes has grown into a multi-billion-naira real estate firm with many subsidiaries across the globe. Beyond providing affordable housing for many clients over the years, the company is a leading employer of labour in Nigeria and Africa. In 2018, Adron homes hit N100 billion in assets.

The next stop for Emmanuel King was the Osun State College of Technology, Esa Oke, for an Ordinary National Diploma (ND), after which he proceeded to the Yaba College of Technology, Lagos, for his Higher National Diploma (HND) in Estate Management and Valuation. He proceeded to the University of Ibadan, where he bagged a Master’s Degree in Housing Development and Management. To top the icing with another cherry, King got a Doctorate Degree in Housing Development and Management from the European American University (HONs) and an MBA from the Metropolitan School of Business Management, United Kingdom.

Founding Adron Homes

In 2012, Emmanuel King founded Adron Homes & Properties Limited. He says he was driven into establishing the company by the need to bring affordable houses to the reach of as many Nigerians as possible. This was in full realisation of the fact that there is no housing shortage in the high end of the market, but in the low and middle-class bracket where the deficit is more pronounced.

The goal was to help low-income earners get affordable homes with a seamless payment plan, and so even though the real estate sector already seemed saturated, there was a vacuum for Emmanuel King to fill. Helping more people transit from tenant to homeowners has been a worthy journey for the last decade and has justified the passion that took him into the real estate sector a decade ago.

According to Adetola Emmanuel King, the concept of affordable homes does not suggest that housing can be cheap because housing is not cheap in any part of the world. In fact, he admits that housing is expensive, which may be in agreement with the Nigerian proverb that says a good soup is the product of money.

He says the affordability concept in housing delivery is not all about the cost of a house, but the totality of the whole environment that includes roads, schools, hospitals, shopping centres and, in some In ten years of operation, Adron Homes and Properties Ltd has over 40 estates to its credit – which can be considered a significant feat even among the big players in real estate.

His wife, Chief Mrs Aderonke Omotola Emmanuel King, is also a co-founder and Executive Director of Adron Group.

Awards and recognitions

Dr Adetola Emmanuel King is a member of several professional bodies, including the Institute of Strategic Managers (FISM) GhanaNigeria, the Institute of Purchasing & Marketing Consultants, Nigeria (IPMC), the Nigeria Institute of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) and Estate Developers Association (REDAN) among others.

His input into the real estate sector has been duly recognised and acknowledged over the years. He clinched the City People Estate Awards (The Real Estate Icon of the Year 2018) (Most Innovative Real Estate Company of the Year 2018), (Real Estate Excellence Awards 2018), (Real Estate Marketing Company of the Year 2016, 2017, 2018), African Youth Parliament Platinum Award, National Association of Nigerian Students Awards (Icon of Humanity), among others.

He has also received the Gold Certificate of the Rotary Club in recognition of his financial contribution towards community service projects. He recently emerged as the new national president of the old student association of Remo Secondary School in Ogun State( RSS).

He holds several chieftaincy titles across different communities, including Akile of Remo Land; Bobajiroro of Ode Remo; Borokini of Ilisan Remo; Asiwaju of Makun Kingdom; Otunba Asoludero of Emuren and Babalaje of Simawa Kingdom among others.