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Elsewhere, the strength of a country’s stock market mirrors the state of its economy. But for Nigeria, this may just be a theoretical statement as developments in the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) are yet to impact on the prices of properties.
While market analysts expect property prices to come down in response to falling share prices, BusinessDay investigations revealed that on the contrary, property prices are rather increasing.
Emmanuel Abolo, chief economist/head market risk management, Access Bank plc, agree that there is a correlation between the stock market and other sectors of the economy.
His position on if falling share prices should affect property prices is that there is likely going to be a time lag before any impact will be felt on the property market. 
For instance, in November last year, Refuge Home Savings and Loans (mortgage bankers), as part of its property development drive, launched what it called “Beaufort Royale 2 Estate” in Mowe, a residential estate with a home-plan for developments of 2 and 3-bedroom detached bungalows with spacious rooms. Each of these will be sitting on a standard plot of land measuring 324 square metres, large enough to accommodate four cars and a garden at the back. 
From the date of launching up to January-February this year, each of the 324 square-metre plot was selling for N350,000. Today, the same plot of land goes for N900,000 representing over 100 percent increase 
Similarly, at Twin City Phase One, developed by Cross and Churchhill Realtors Limited, an integrated real estate company, a plot of land was sold for N250,000 when it was launched in October last year. From this price, it went for N375,000 when the second phase of the estate was launched in January this year. 
When the company came up with another juicy mega estate project known as Green Oak Park, a fully serviced estate with properly laid out plots in a secured and gated environment, the price jumped to N550,000 with the prospects of moving it up to N660,000 by November and N750,000 by December. 
This is in spite of the fact that the stock market lost about N4 trillion to the ravaging forces of demand and supply.
But the property market remain the most active at the moment, with some saying it is even expected to gain from expected investment shifts that will see savvy investors moving cash to areas with high dividend potentials.
Managing director and chief executive officer of Union Homes Savings and Loans plc, Austin Ekundayo Aikhorin, told BusinessDay that in the circumstance, “the next best investment alternative is the property market; it is the way to go.”
Aikhorin hoped that the property market would take an upturn because of the melt down that would sway investment in that direction. He added that movement of oil workers away from the insecurity in the troubled Niger Delta region was sure to buoy up activities in the property sector.
Ifeanyi Onuorah of the Springmortgage Bank agrees with the Union Homes’ boss, pointing out however, that “people are not going to move their cash from the stock market to the property market because losses have already been made.”
Onuorah who is the managing director and chief executive officer of the bank added that “people who have money for investment would rather go to the property market.”
On whether the melt down has any spiral effect on mortgage, Aikhorin disclosed that credit underwriting was still very low, adding that very few people were being financed by mortgages.
From global perspective, he said Nigeria was the least likely to be affected by the global stock price crash, explaining that “because of the magnitude of the housing stock deficit we have in Nigeria, it will take a while before property development here will begin to feel the impact of the global recession.”
He dismissed direct impact of the recession on mortgage financing, pointing out however that indirectly, it might have little impact by constraining funds availability for mortgage financing.