13/10/2025
SHARED .
One of my followers dropped this question under my previous post
“I have ₦30 million, should I invest it in Money Market Mutual Funds or build a house for rent? Please advise, Mr. Iking Ferry.”
Now, let me tell you something many “experts” will never say because it will spoil their consultancy business.
If you rush to use ₦30 million to build a house just because “rent money is sure,” you might end up becoming a broke landlord.
Let me explain this in the language even Mama Ngozi in Mile 12 will understand.
Imagine:
Mama Ngozi sells pepper, rice, and tomatoes in the market.
One day, she saves ₦3,000,000. Her friend tells her,
“Ah, Mama Ngozi, use that money to build a small shop at the corner there. You’ll be collecting rent every year.”
She gets excited and builds the shop.
After finishing the small shop, she realizes that nobody is renting it yet.
She has a building, yes, but no cash flow.
Her capital is now sitting inside cement and sand.
Two months later, one of her daughter Ngozi falls sick.
She needs ₦100,000 for hospital bill.
She starts calling people for loan.
She has a building, but she’s broke.
That’s exactly how many people are in Nigeria today:
Land rich, but cash poor.
Now, Let me Go Back To Your ₦30 Million
If you have ₦30 million, the first thing is not to “build.”
The first thing is to ask:
What do I want this ₦30 million to do for me?
Money is a soldier.
If you don’t give it a clear mission, it will go on vacation.
Let's Start by Analyzing Both Options:
OPTION 1: BUILDING A HOUSE FOR RENT
Let’s assume you build a 4-unit mini flat somewhere in Lagos or Abuja for ₦30 million.
Each tenant pays ₦1 million yearly.
That’s ₦4 million rent income yearly, sounds good, right?
Now remove:
Maintenance & repairs: ₦500k
Agency & legal fees: ₦200k
Empty months (when tenants move out): ₦300k
Your net income is about ₦3 million yearly.
That’s 10% annual return, assuming everything goes perfectly.
But remember, your capital is locked in the house.
You can’t easily sell one toilet if you need quick cash.
I hope you are following...
OPTION 2: MONEY MARKET MUTUAL FUND
If you put ₦30 million in a good Money Market Fund today (like Investnaija by Chapel Hill Denhen, ARM, or Stanbic IBTC),
you’ll earn an average of 12–18% per annum, depending on the fund.
(Remember many Money Market Mutual Funds have paid around 19% to 20% this year, but let's use 12% - 15% to do our calculations, because as a smart investor, do not overstate your return during budgeting).
That’s ₦3.6 million to ₦4.5 million yearly, and the money is liquid.
You can withdraw anytime, no tenant wahala, no repairs, no legal fees.
Plus, you can split the ₦30 million into other portfolio assets like:
₦10m in Money Market Fund
₦10m in Blue-chip Stocks
₦5m in Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)
₦5m for emergency and business opportunities
This way, your money is working harder than you, and you can sleep without landlord stress.
Now, let me tell you the Secret The Rich Know
The rich don’t rush to build houses, they build cash flow first.
They use their cash flow to buy houses, not the other way around.
Poor people buy land and start praying for rent.
Rich people build systems that generate rent from multiple sources.
The day your cash starts building for you,
that’s the day you’ve crossed from hustling for money to commanding money.
Here's my honest advice:
If you have ₦30 million,
don’t just “build”, structure your capital.
Let your first goal be financial liquidity and steady returns,
then use the profit from your portfolio to build your real estate.
Because when a landlord is broke,
even his tenant will start advising him with pride. 😂
Even Mama Ngozi now understands something most university graduates don’t:
Money that doesn’t flow will soon finish.
If your ₦30 million cannot earn for you monthly,
it’s not an asset, it’s a beautiful liability with a roof on top.
Financial intelligence is not about how fast you invest
It’s about knowing what to invest in,
and when to build what.
My name is Iking Ferry, a Financial Literacy Advocate on a mission to build 1million Financially FREE Nigerians with the right knowledge
Founder, Pulseford Business School
