Inclusive City Growth and the Poor: Policies, Challenges and Prospects | 152 CHAPTER 10 Can the Introduction of Vacant Property Tax (VPT) Solve the Housing Crisis in Nigeria? Oluwasegun Seriki Introduction The need for housing is considered to be one of the most fundamental needs of man as declared in Article 17 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), outlined by the United Nations in 1948 (UN, 1948). Within the context of construction, housing plays a crucial role in improving the health, social and economic welfare of the society. Nubi (2008) outlined that owning a house is considered to be a booster of one’s status within the Nigerian society. Despite several efforts by successive governments and the private sector to proffer lasting solutions to the lingering crisis, there seems no solution in sight for the sector despite a burgeoning population. In 2015, the housing deficit in Nigeria stood at about 17 million units, despite the continuous growth being experienced in the sector and improving prospects in the construction industry (National Bureau of Statistics Nigeria, 2018). The rise in demand for housing has been attributed to several issues: the boom in foreign direct investment from abroad, increasing population of young people and increasing rural to urban migration among others. While evidence from field data suggests that a large proportion of houses and estates within the country remain unoccupied, the question remains about how to develop alternatives to the distribution and availability of houses. With thousands of empty houses within the country, with several of them lying unused in cities where there is high demand, researchers and policymakers seek to fill the gap in understanding of how to influence house owners to rent out empty living spaces. Countries such as Ireland and other EU countries are in the process of introducing increments in property tax on