The housing crisis: Tenants scream out as landlords raise rent prices

Chukwuemeka Okeke is a guaranteed show-stopper. Lean and fragile, he is. Beyond the slim figure, though, is a body wailing for nourishment. The arrival of his next meal is uncertain. After being forcibly removed from his home, he still has no idea where he will put his four children to bed.

According to The Guardian, Okeke’s income from driving korope minibuses has dropped significantly because, in an effort to reduce the high cost, Nigerians are instead prioritising walking large distances.

This is also the case with Olayinka Ojo. He has been firmly rejecting his landlord’s demands for a rent increase for the past three months, and the two have been at odds ever since.

“If you don’t have the money, you can go and look for another accommodation,” his landlord had told him in a fairly harsh manner this fateful afternoon. You have no place in my home.

Where should he go from here? He was rendered speechless. Infuriated by his landlord’s comments, he was unable to formulate a plan of action. As others went about their day, he stood at the Ijegun bus station, completely unaware of the onlookers. The decision by his landlord to raise Ojo’s house rent by one hundred percent had devastated him.

“That is the going price for houses in this area,” he thought to himself. “You can try to find another place to live if you can’t afford that amount.”

House rents have continued to rise while salaries and incomes have stayed stagnant, making this not the best of times to be a tenant in the country for people like Ojo and Okeke, who are still fighting to make ends meet.

Many companies have not even considered raising wages or other forms of compensation for their workers in the past five years, despite the fact that the present crisis is a direct result of government policies.

As a result of the escalating costs of essential utilities, the recently gained optimism around President Bola Tinubu’s ‘Renewed Hope Agenda’ is now being put to the test. A cost-of-living problem has engulfed the nation.

Worry about homelessness is the most troubling aspect. Over 200 million people call Nigeria home, making it the country with the highest concentration of homeless people globally.

World Population Review reports that 24 million people in the country are homeless. Overcrowding in shelters is a major problem in our country.

Many more people just cannot afford to live in a home of their own. In shanties or other improvised dwellings, they’squat’ with loved ones.

This paper’s research shows that even in large companies, many Nigerians do not make enough to cover their basic living expenses. State and federal governments in Nigeria have declared various measures to mitigate the impact of government policies, but for Nigerians employed by non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the future remains clouded with uncertainty.

The skyrocketing expense of rent has many Nigerians, particularly those residing in big cities, fuming, and they’re worried about how it may influence their mental health.

Renting is the way to go in big cities like Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt because of the high cost of housing. Many individuals find it difficult to buy or build their own homes in these areas.

For example, out of Lagos’s 20 million residents, more than 80% are believed to reside in rental housing. What this means is that the city’s rental market is controlled by the landlords. Some of them are nice and understanding, but others are nasty and intolerable, and they constantly take advantage of the tenants’ vulnerability. That is why there are other factors besides price to consider while looking for a rental in Nigeria.

Tenants are requesting that the Bola Ahmed Tinubu government find a solution to rein in shylock landlords nationwide so that they can find some relief from the financial burden they’re under and avoid what they call “forced” relocation to the suburbs or rural areas.

Our research indicates that, in January of this year, in light of the economic collapse, the unpleasant rent review became a widespread problem. Since June, when the fuel subsidy was eliminated, the situation has worsened due to the high inflation rate, which has hit households and companies hard.

Last month, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) published the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and Inflation Report for October 2023. The report revealed that the headline inflation rate rose to 27.33% in the reviewed month, compared to 26.72 percent in September 2023.

The headline inflation rate for October 2023 was 0.61 percentage points higher than the headline inflation rate for September 2023, according to the movement analysis. Not only that, but the headline inflation rate was 6.24% higher year-on-year than the rate recorded in October 2022 (which was 21.09%). The report stated that this indicates that the headline inflation rate (on a year-on-year basis) rose in October 2023 compared to the previous year’s corresponding month, specifically October 2022.

Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas, and Other Fuels accounted for 4.57% of the year-on-year increase and 0.29% of the month-on-month increase in the headline index, according to the report’s divisional breakdown.

Some Lagos, Ibadan, and Abeokuta landlords have followed the inflationary trend and raised flat rents by 80 to 100 percent, driving many tenants to look for other housing options.

A two-bedroom flat in Ibadan, Oyo State, for example, is reportedly currently priced at N450,000, up from an annual range of N250,000 to N300,000. Additionally, a self-contained flat that was rented for between N200,000 and N250,000 now goes for between N300,000 and N350, 000, while a three-bedroom flat that was originally priced at N400,000 per annum now ranges from N600,000 to N800,000.

The current market value of a fully furnished flat on Lagos Island is from N1.5 million to N2 million. The average annual rent for a three-bedroom flat in Lekki Phase 1 has gone up from N4 million to N5 million.

A three-bedroom flat on Chevron Drive now costs an average of N4 million, up from N3 million not long ago. Apartments with three bedrooms in Ajah are currently selling for N3 million, up from N2 million earlier this year, and in Sangotedo, the same size and style are going for N2.5 million, up from N1.5 million.

A three-bedroom flat in Lagos Mainland now costs N2 million, up from N1.5 million before. While in Ogba the rent went up from N1 million to N1.5 million, in Yaba it went up from N1.5 million to N2 million.

Rent for a three-bedroom flat in the Fagba and Iju regions has risen from 600,000 Naira in January to 800,000 Naira now. A comparable flat in Ikorodu now costs N450,000, up from N350,000. A three-bedroom flat in the Ekoro district of Abule-Egba went from N400,000 to N650,000, while a two-bedroom flat in the same area went from N200,000 to N300,000 earlier this year.

A three-bedroom flat in Mowe, Ogun State, is currently renting for an average of N400,000, up from N300,000 in January of this year. Recently moved to Atan-Ota in Ado-Odo Local Council, Ogun State, Mr Tunji Mudasiru, a resident of Abule-Egba, Lagos, said that his landlady raised the rent of his two-bedroom flat from N250,000 to N450,000.

I just relocated to Abule-Egba from the Island since the rent was too much for my budget. I rented the house out for 200,000 Naira four years ago, but my landlady raised the price to 400,000 Naira all of a sudden this year. Since my pay was not raised, I will not be able to handle the rise. I was compelled to move to Atan, which is situated along the Idi-Iroko road; I managed to secure the identical flat for N150,000, though.

Even more so with the recent spike in transportation costs, making the daily trek from Atan to Island is no picnic, yet I’m stuck doing it. He reported that he had found a solution to deal with his pal in the Oworonsoki area till his normal weekend getaway.

Mr. Olujimi Gabriel bemoaned the fact that his landlord abruptly increased his rent from N600,000 to N800,000. He is a public servant employed by the Lagos State government.

I was already having trouble making ends meet when my landlord unexpectedly raised the rent for my two-bedroom flat in Agege to N800,000 at the beginning of July. Instead of renewing my rent, I used the money to finish two rooms at my site in the Pakoto area of Ogun State.

Given that I am a parent to three college-aged children, that was my only choice. The situation is so dire that landlords are causing tenants extreme distress right now, he added.

A man named Daddy Grace, who lived in a two-bedroom flat in the Meiran axis of Lagos State, expressed his desire to vacate the premises following the issuance of an eviction notice by the landlord.

When I looked for a new place to live, the lowest offer I got was N450,000 (not including the $250,000 in agents’ fees and commissions). I was already paying N250,000 a month for my flat. My landlord insisted for N350,000, so I had no choice but to return and ask her. The sum is still substantial even after that. A lot of folks can’t afford this, he asked.

Yemisi Awoyemi, an estate agent based in Ibadan, attributed the situation to the high cost of building materials, the increase in the government’s land use charge/tax, and inflation, which has practically increased prices of goods. Many tenants who spoke with our correspondent blamed landlords and estate agents for the arbitrary increase in rent. People have been fleeing to the suburbs in droves, she said, because of the development.

The rent increase has pushed many people out of the city centre and into the suburbs and rural areas. Some residents of the complex have been compelled to rent portions of their units due to the construction. These flats typically have three bedrooms. For some, the best option is to finish off a single room and move in.

The economic collapse is the main cause of this increase. Occupiers and tenants alike are having trouble paying rent on time. Some tenants are currently paying in installments, and property managers and landlords are open to accepting this payment method. Many renters are avoiding dealing with property managers and landlords due to rising rents and inability to pay. As a result, there are now more empty flats in urban areas. This has been going on since January, but Awoyemi claims that the effects didn’t become noticeable until June.

According to Saheed Fuhad, a real estate investment expert based in Lagos, there was a demand surge for apartments in less expensive locations as people were priced out of extremely expensive locations.

Landlords are capitalising on the shortage of available units. The current state of the economy is another argument used by landlords to justify the increase in rent. The current state of affairs necessitates that the majority of individuals relocate to areas with lower housing costs, regardless of the distance involved. Areas along the Lagos-Ogun axis, such as Akute, Alagbole, Agbado-Oke Aro, Magboro, Mowe, Sango-Ota, and others, tend to have more affordable rents, hence many Lagos workers choose to live there.

The majority of these places have terrible roads and other infrastructural issues, but nobody seems to care. To cut down on transit costs, he pointed out that some people go to work on Mondays and come home on Fridays.

Prince Gboyega Onakoya, chief executive officer of Flourish Properties Int’l and a property management located in Abeokuta, has stated unequivocally that flat location and amenities determine rent.

“This question encompasses multiple aspects. Although it varies with the flats’ locations and amenities, is the rent truly expensive? Despite the high expense, some renters would rather live in an urban or posh estate than a suburban or rural one.

Some property owners, motivated by financial gain or other self-serving motives, increase rents notwithstanding. There are some unscrupulous real estate agents who tack on exorbitant fees to the rent. “The location and facilities determine the high cost of rent,” he explained.

The lack of regulations regarding the frequency and proportion of rent increases by landlords was the root cause of the widespread belief that the government was not doing enough to regulate the industry, according to investigations conducted by The Guardian. Rent regulations differ from one state to the next, according to the results.

The Lagos State Tenancy Law, 2011, Section 37, states that a tenant can seek a declaration from the court that the rent increase is unreasonable. The court can then decide whether the increase is reasonable, considering the rent paid for similar apartments in the area. To the extent that the court finds the increase to be irrational, it has the authority to adjust it to a more reasonable sum.

In order to alleviate the suffering of the renters, Awoyemi demanded immediate action. He placed the blame on landlords, but he did concede that rising construction costs and government land use charges and taxes had a role in the development.

“The government is the one who should be criticised,” he said. “They need to fix the economy so that prices can go down. Furthermore, the government ought to make an effort to provide reasonably priced housing for the general public, rather than housing only for the wealthy. After all, how are you going to encourage a young graduate, pepper vendor, or meat vendor to purchase a three-bedroom flat if it costs an arm and a leg to own? Affordable rent-to-own properties are another option for real estate investors to explore.

Fuhad said that the federal and state governments should investigate the housing shortage.

“The government’s social housing programme will be beneficial. The exorbitant price of construction supplies needs to be tackled. We import the majority of our construction supplies, so the crisis in the foreign exchange market needs to be investigated.

It is important to push private real estate developers to step up their game. “The housing needs of low and middle income earners should be taken care of by activating the mortgage system in Nigeria,” he stated.

When asked about the need for housing regulations, Onakoya suggested that the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) host seminars to teach the public about property management and tenancy laws.