Effect of Rising Cost of Building Materials on Property Development in Bariga Lagos State, Nigeria 

Building materials played an important role in the Property development. It includes those materials put together in erecting or constructing structures, development is not conceivable without their use. The cost of building materials poses a significant threat to both the construction industry and people aspiring to own houses and that many projects were not completed on time due to the cost of materials, which has been on the increase. This study examined the effect of the rise in the cost of building materials on real property development in the Bariga area of Lagos state, Nigeria. A field survey research design was adopted for the collection of primary data on the subject of study. The target population comprises forty (40) property developers, forty (40) contractors, and 40 building materials dealers operating in the Bariga area of Lagos state. The sample size of this project is 120; this comprises property developers, contractors, and building materials dealers operating within the Bariga area of Lagos state which were targeted for administration of questionnaire. Random sampling technique was used as appropriate sampling technique.The questionnaires were complemented by oral interviews. Descriptive statistics were used in analyzing the collected data such as cross-tabulation, and frequency table The paper revealed that the cost of land acquisition, cost of building materials, professional charges, and lack of capital are militating against property development in the study area. It is indeed unfortunate that the alarming increase in the cost of building materials and labor does not only the rent passing on prospective tenants nor the market value of such property but also the individual dream to build and own a home in the study area. Besides timely completion, high prices of building materials form a crucial constraint to improving housing conditions in low-income earning countries like Nigeria. Dependent on imported materials and lack of instability in government policies and programs among other factors has a drastic effect on the cost of building materials.Inhibited innovations in construction methods, quality of workmanship is affected, quality of workmanship is affected, project abandonment, and volume of construction output is affected. The study recommends that the incessant rise in the cost of building materials be remediable through the development/use of alternative building materials, among others.