© JAN 2020 | IRE Journals | Volume 3 Issue 7 | ISSN: 2456-8880 IRE 1701896 ICONIC RESEARCH AND ENGINEERING JOURNALS 165 Effects of Macroeconomic Variables on Residential Property Investment in Abuja Metropolis, Nigeria VICTOR N. EKWEBELEM 1 , FIDELIS I. EMOH 2 1, 2 Department of Estate Management, Nnamdi Azikiwe University, P.M.B 5025, Awka, Nigeria. Abstract- To ensure that the market is properly positioned, an assessment of the forces that drives the value chain is paramount. The study is geared towards examining the effects of macroeconomic variables on residential property investment performance in Abuja metropolis, Nigeria by assessing the risk- return performance of the investment; examining the trend in macroeconomic variables; establishing linkages between macroeconomic factors; and examining the effect of macroeconomic factors on residential investment performance. Both primary and secondary sources of data were utilized. The study analysed 722 rent and sale transactions sourced primarily from Registered Estate Firms to determine the sales and rents returns, and data on macroeconomic factors were collected secondarily from Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) for the study period (2001-2015). Results showed that base on risk-return performance analysis of Gwarimpa market; is considered the most performed market with stable and steady return having the least unit of risk at 35% and 43% with comparable average return at 11.05 and 12.5% for 3B/R and 4B/R respectively. The macroeconomic variables which included: the Annual Growth rate in Real GDP over the period of study falls within 2.35- 8.38%, with lowest and highest real GDP observed in 2015 and 2010 respectively, the Annual Interest rate falls within 11.0-25.01%, it was observed that there was a continuous fall in interest rate from 2003 to 2008. The also result suggested that between 18.2%- 83.6% and 16.2%-79% variations in three bedroom and four bedroom returns across the nine residential markets out of the twelve were significant influenced by macroeconomic indicators while three markets were not significantly influenced. The study therefore conclude that macroeconomic policy has significant effect in Abuja residential market performance in nine markets though the remaining three markets were insignificant to influence the performance. Indexed Terms- Macroeconomic variables, residential property, market performance, total returns I. INTRODUCTION It is far evidently obvious that macroeconomic factors influence property returns and these dynamics of property return occurs when change, and slow adjustment of return to changes in macroeconomic policy creates a lag time, which generally makes property market to exhibit low price fluctuation. Besides, house rent sluggishness leads to irrational exuberance bubble or influences in the property market during economic booms. Unexpected changes in macroeconomic factors such as money supply, gross domestic product (GDP), interest rate, etc. affects property returns with a lag which consequently leads to instability in property investment depending on the speed of transmission mechanism: which relies on the efficiency and effectiveness of the institutional framework of Nigeria which includes the speed of administrative process, credit supply and land availability for investment and so on. Conversely, property return also exhibits feedback reaction to macro economy, the reappraisal effect is that increasing nominal rent also causes wealth effect which raise consumption, and decreasing house rent might shrink consumption. Over the years, some Scholars have tried to establish the link between property returns and macro-economic factor with attendant success. In Europe [12], [5], [8] [18], in America [1], [11], [7], in Asia [16], [17], [9] and in Africa as developing continent [25], [10], [7], [13],