About

Savetown is a cooperative homeownership platform built to help first-time homebuyers save, plan, and access mortgage options. I worked on this project alongside Iyinoluwa Aboyeji and the founding team to shape the product’s user experience, from research and strategy to design and testing.

Role

UX Research, UX Design, Visual Design, Interaction Design, Interactive Prototype

Figma, Figjam, Google Forms

Team

Cynthia Osi and Victor Asuquo

https://savetown.com/

A homeownership cooperative offering access to homeownership through structured savings plans, mortgage options, and financial advisory services. Our goal is to help first-time home buyers in Nigeria save, plan, and secure financing options to purchase their homes. We also work with developers to help these first-time homeowners with the houses of their choice.

A fully functional and responsive website

A web application optimized for all screen sizes (mobile, tablet, and desktop)

A dedicated mobile app for on-the-go access

An admin dashboard to manage and monitor all product activities

Create a digital platform that helps users save and plan toward home ownership.

Offer advice on financing options, including savings, mortgages, and other financial products.

Ensure user funds are securely saved in foreign currencies (USD).

Provide transparency and tracking for users on their money, and savings progress.

Increase access to homeownership for Nigerians.

Foster a community of like-minded individuals saving for homes.

Arrange collective housing purchase schemes.

Wallets should support the direct transfer of USD or GBP from local domiliciary accounts or foreign accounts

In Nigeria, many first-time homebuyers struggle with scattered savings habits, limited access to trusted mortgage options, and a general lack of guidance through the homeownership process. Savetown was created to make that journey simpler, more transparent, and cooperative.

Research

I started by exploring how first-time homebuyers actually use financial tools, digging into their worries, habits, and what confuses them most. I also studied competitor apps to spot gaps and find where Savetown could truly stand out not just by being functional, but by feeling clear, supportive, and genuinely helpful.

I rolled up my sleeves and started exploring what homeownership could look like in a more approachable, digital-first way. Once I had a rough direction, I pulled together a mood board to set the visual tone, not just to make things “look nice,” but to anchor the feeling of trust, simplicity, and financial clarity. Then I sketched, wireframed, and prototyped multiple design directions some simple, some bold to find the right balance between trust, clarity, and encouragement.

To bring that vision to life, I prototyped key user flows from onboarding to savings setup and tested them with real users. These weren’t just testers; they were people actively working toward owning a home.

I Prototyped real scenarios, from setting saving goals to estimating mortgage plans to bring the experience to life early and see where users paused, clicked, or got confused. It helped us shape not just the flow, but the feeling of using Savetown.

We’re currently rolling out updated designs that reflect where the product is headed — including savings groups, a community space for house seekers by location, and tailored housing schemes. After a focused 3-day team retreat, we aligned on a clearer direction refining the product to better connect with users and tell the right story.