The Mud House Boom and Bust

The housing boom has busted in a tiny village in the West African country of Guinea, where homebuilders had constructed rows of new mud houses in hopes of cashing in on the rising demand for housing and its rising costs. Now, they sit empty.

1 minute read

July 10, 2009, 7:00 AM PDT

By Nate Berg

"Rents had risen in recent years, and local residents and home builders let their enthusiasm get the better of them, turning out a spate of new construction. Now, rows of newly built houses stand empty in the village, and rents have been cut in half. So far, not so different from Miami or Phoenix. Except that these homes are one-room, windowless mud-brick huts, and the rent is about $6.50 a month."

The boom was driven by an influx of workers coming to work in nearby mines. But when demand for mining dropped, the workers stopped coming, and many of those who had come left.

FULL STORY: A Housing Market Built on Mud Takes Off, and Then Goes Thud

Thursday, July 9, 2009 in The Wall Street Journal

Community / Economic Development Housing Africa Housing Market Guinea

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