Housing aspiration is an important aspect of housing market analysis. However, there is a paucity of empirical research on housing aspiration among residents in informal settlements in developing countries. This study therefore investigated housing aspiration among the residents of Ayobo, Lagos, Nigeria. A cross-sectional survey of 1,151 households in Ayobo was conducted using a structured questionnaire as the data-collection instrument. The data were analysed using descriptive statistical and categorical regression analyses. The results show that a majority of the respondents were low-income earners living in rented and rooming-house types of accommodation. Around 73% of them expressed an intention to move to another residence, and 56% of this category of respondents intend to move into self-contained flats. The reasons for the planned relocation include poor condition of their present dwellings, changes in tenure status and household size, and the desire for exclusive use of facilities in their homes. In addition to these reasons, the waste-disposal method, sharing facilities, employment, and age and marital status of the residents emerged as the strongest predictors of housing aspiration among the respondents in the survey. This implies that, in order to meet the housing preferences and aspirations of residents in informal urban settlements in Nigeria, housing developers need to give adequate attention to the marital, age, employment and tenure status of the residents and place emphasis on developing affordable single-family houses and block of flats, as well as strategies for improving access to basic social amenities and services.

The literature indicates that most housing in the urban areas of many countries in the global South is in informal settlements, provided through informal mechanisms that are often not well understood. This paper contributes to understanding the forces influencing real estate markets in informal settlements, drawing on a case study of the under-researched Ayobo community in Lagos, Nigeria. The paper examines the roles played by government agencies and other market actors, including buyers, sellers, informants, financiers and witnesses, in relation to the operation and regulation of informal land markets. The analysis of the data, drawn from a survey and interviews, reveals a thriving property market, which is socially if not formally regulated. The paper concludes that this flourishing informal market needs strengthening to effectively meet the housing needs of urban residents.

Stanovanjske aspiracije so pomemben vidik analize stanovanjskega trga, vendar obstaja le malo empiričnih raziskav stanovanjskih aspiracij prebivalcev neformalnih naselij v državah v razvoju. Zato avtorji v tej raziskavi preučujejo stanovanjske aspiracije prebivalcev neformalnega naselja Ayobo v Lagosu v Nigeriji. Izvedli so presečno raziskavo 1.151 gospodinjstev v naselju, pri čemer so kot orodje za zbiranje podatkov uporabili strukturirani vprašalnik. Podatke so preučili z opisno statistično in kategorično regresijsko analizo. Rezultati so pokazali, da ima večina anketirancev nizke dohodke in živi v najemniških stanovanjih ali sobah v skupnih hišah (ang. rooming houses). Približno 73 % anketirancev se namerava preseliti drugam; od teh se jih 56 % namerava preseliti v stanovanja z lastno kuhinjo in kopalnico. Razlogi za selitev so slabo stanje trenutnih bivališč, spremembe lastništva in velikosti gospodinjstva ter želja po uporabi lastne kuhinje in kopalnice. Poleg teh razlogov so se način odstranjevanja odpadkov, skupna raba kuhinje in kopalnice, zaposlenost, starost in zakonski stan izkazali za dejavnike, ki so najbolje napovedali stanovanjske aspiracije anketirancev. To pomeni, da bi morali gradbeni investitorji za to, da uresničijo preference in aspiracije prebivalcev nigerijskih neformalnih naselij, nameniti ustrezno pozornost zakonskemu stanu, starosti, zaposlitvi in lastništvu stanovalcev ter dati poudarek gradnji cenovno dostopnih enodružinskih hiš in stanovanjskih blokov, kot tudi strategijam izboljšanja dostopa do osnovne infrastrukture in storitev.Ključne besede: neformalna naselja, stanovanjske aspiracije, stanovanjske preference, namera o preselitvi, Lagos