Exploring the challenges of cost management in the Ghanaian real estate industry
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Date
2021-07-13
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Abstract
The study aimed at exploring the challenges of cost management by project managers
in the Ghanaian real estate industry. With this aim, three (3) objectives were established
which were to identify the significant cost management practices used by project
managers in real estate projects in Ghana, to identify the challenges faced by project
managers in cost management in real estate projects in Ghana and to identify the
significant strategies that can be adopted by project managers to improve cost
management in real estate projects in Ghana. Literature review was conducted on the
objectives to identify relating variables to aid in the development of an instrument for
the study. The study adopted a quantitative research method which informed the use of
questionnaire in the collection of data. After the development and distribution of the
questionnaire, fifty-four (54) questionnaires were retrieved for the analysis. The data
collected were analyzed using percentages and one-sample t-test. From the analysis, it
was realized that, the superficial area method was the frequently used cost planning tool
among real estate project managers. Also, with cost budgeting and estimating, the
detailed estimating method was the only significant tool rated by the respondents.
Finally, at the cost control phase, the project managers indicated that, the cash flow
method is the most frequently used tool during real estate projects. With the challenges
associated with cost management practices in real estate projects, the most frequently
occurring challenge was poor reliability of project budget. With the strategies to
improve cost management, the first ranked factors were the use of qualified and
experienced project team and given a clear definition of scope. With these findings, it
was recommended that, project managers must explore various options with regards to
the tools used for cost management so as to adopt the most suitable approach for every
specific project and project managers must endeavor to continuously keep accurate data
on cost in order to enhance their cost planning processes
Description
A thesis submitted to the Department of Construction Technology and Management,Kwame Nkrumah university of science and Technology, Kumasi in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Award Degree of Master of Science in Project Management.
Keywords
Cost management, Real estate, Project manager