IN THE LAGOS edition of Monopoly, a board game, the priciest neighbourhood up for grabs in Nigeria’s commercial capital is Banana Island. The sand-filled addition to Ikoyi, a rich part of town, has become home to some of Nigeria’s hottest property since its creation 20 years ago. To enter, non-residents need security codes that change every hour. There are curfews for domestic staff. Banana Island was supposed to have more reliable power than the rest of Lagos, too, though it has not quite worked out that way. No matter. These days one square metre of land goes for almost $2,000, approaching prices in Camps Bay, a fancy suburb of Cape Town in South Africa. Plots are selling fast.

The skylines of west Africa’s coastal cities are being reshaped by a surge in luxury property development. The changes offer an insight into how wealthy Africans are spending their money. They also show that property is beginning to play a more important role in African economies.

Lagos is a striking example, perhaps because it sits on a densely populated peninsula where there is little choice but to build upwards. One developer reckons that at least 600 flats worth $1m or more each are currently being built there, even though GDP per person is still just $800. Property contributed 5.8% of Nigeria’s GDP in 2024, almost as much as crude-oil and natural-gas extraction, which accounted for 6.2%. That is a remarkable feat in an economy dominated by oil.

But the trend is not limited to Nigeria. Arrivals at Ghana’s main airport in Accra, the capital, are greeted by agents selling flats in at least half a dozen plush developments. Abidjan, the commercial centre of Ivory Coast, is being transformed, too. Land prices there have been rising by around 10% a year for more than a decade.

One reason for the boom is the changing nature of Africa’s diaspora. Larger and wealthier than in the past, its members are spending more time and money on the continent. Marième Ngom, a Senegalese property developer, says clients who want luxury options already have second homes elsewhere but value staying in style when they come to see family or do business. Their ranks have been swollen by industrialists in the Sahel. Insecurity and the fondness of Sahelian juntas for expropriation have prompted the rich in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso to send their families to safer places like Ivory Coast or Senegal.

African property has also become more attractive for rich locals, as tighter financial regulation and stricter rules against money-laundering have made it harder to move money. Rich Africans used to park their money in Britain, Switzerland or the Middle East, says Pedro Novo, a property boss formerly in Abidjan. “Today it is much more difficult to get this money out.” By contrast, luxury property in Africa is still loosely regulated. Pricier plots are bought and sold in dollars, insuring against the risk of weakening local currencies.

Members of the diaspora appreciate the opportunity to earn rent within the country from their flats when they are not using them. That is especially lucrative in cities like Dakar, Senegal’s capital, where luxury hotels are thin on the ground. Others opt for build-to-rent blocks. Developers help them find tenants who can pay the high rents. Property across the region is still cheaper than in other places, promising higher returns as cities grow.

Population growth, too, spurs the trend. Abidjan gains 200,000 new residents a year; in Lagos, it may be as many as 1m. Most are unlikely to benefit as few investors are interested in building non-luxury homes. Yet while new middle-class arrivals may not be able to afford the priciest flats, they enjoy the malls and restaurants in mixed developments that serve as islands in the cities’ traffic-snarled chaos. For investors, combining residential and commercial property mitigates risk.

There are some concerns that the boom is a bubble. Many observers are puzzled by sky-high prices and the spread of luxury developments even to sleepier cities. Yet for now, a steady flow of rich buyers and a dearth of alternative investment options will probably keep it going