Credit for house purchases by Nigerian households increased to 9.6 index points in the second quarter of 2026, indicating stronger demand for borrowing to finance personal home purchases, according to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
The apex bank disclosed this in its Credit Conditions Survey Report for Q2 2026 released on Monday, noting that lenders reported increased credit availability across secured, unsecured and corporate lending during the period.
The CBN also said lenders recorded lower default rates across several lending categories in the second quarter.
According to the report, credit demand increased to 15.1 index points for secured lending and 15.2 index points for corporate lending, while unsecured lending remained subdued at -1.2 index points.
Consumer loans to households increased to 11.2 index points, while credit for house purchases rose to 9.6 index points.
Lending to small businesses increased significantly to 26.4 index points, while mortgage and re-mortgage lending to households rose to 13.3 index points.
The report stated that consumer credit conditions reflected stronger demand for several forms of household borrowing during the period.
On unsecured lending, the CBN said overdraft and personal loans to households increased to 7.9 index points.
However, credit card lending to households declined to -2.0 index points.
The apex bank also reported stronger demand across several categories of corporate lending.
Lending to small businesses increased to 26.5 index points, while lending to medium private non-financial corporations (PNFCs) rose to 25.5 index points.
Credit to large PNFCs also increased to 8.9 index points.
However, lending to other financial corporations (OFCs) remained unchanged at 0.0 index point.
The CBN said the stronger demand for credit was accompanied by an improvement in loan performance, with lenders reporting lower default rates across secured and unsecured lending.
Default rates also declined across all corporate lending categories, including small businesses, medium PNFCs, large PNFCs and other financial corporations.
The increase in credit for house purchases comes amid rising housing costs and growing demand for financing options that can enable households to acquire residential properties.
The latest credit conditions data also point to broader demand for formal financing among households and businesses, particularly through secured lending and credit facilities targeted at small enterprises.
The CBN’s findings suggest that lenders are becoming more willing to extend credit while borrowers are increasing their demand for financing across key segments of the economy.
