From Scholastic Hir, Makurdi; Tony John, Port Harcourt; Noah Ebije, Kaduna; Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa; Ighomuaye Lucky, Benin and Okey Sampson, Umuahia
House rents have surged by 100 per cent to over 150 per cent in major cities and other towns in Nigeria.
According to experts, this is driven by high inflation, foreign exchange volatility, and a massive housing deficit.
In this report, some Nigerians suggested how to address the skyrocketing house rent and accommodation crisis in the country.
Govt should encourage institutional investment in affordable rental housing -Manasseh Denga, devt strategy expert; Abuja.
The surge in house rents reflects deeper structural problems, including inflation, exchange rate instability, high construction costs, and a severe housing supply deficit.
The Federal and State Governments should establish low-cost housing funds, provide affordable long-term mortgage financing, reduce the cost of land acquisition and building approvals, and incentivise private developers through tax reliefs to accelerate mass housing delivery.
Tackling the accommodation crisis also requires a coordinated public-private partnership approach. The governments should invest in infrastructure that opens up new residential areas, strengthen rent regulation where appropriate, and encourage institutional investment in affordable rental housing. The increasing housing supply remains the most sustainable way to moderate rent increases over the long term.
Govt should enforce govt-approved rent protocol -Selumun Jagudu, civil servant, Makurdi
To address the skyrocketing house rent and accommodation crisis in Nigeria, the government approved housing agencies should be the only recognised agency in terms of accommodation and house rent in order to stop individual house agents from making agency fees unnecessarily high. These individual housing agents take advantage of the tenant’s desperation and vulnerability. There should be an enforcement of a fair, government-approved rent fee on all accommodations – flats, bungalows, single room and self contained houses. This will prevent some landlords from charging exorbitant house rents indiscriminately.
Govt should subsidise cost of building materials -Armstrong Tsea, media practitioner; Makurdi
High house rent can be effectively addressed through deliberate government policies aimed at increasing the supply of affordable housing. These measures should include subsidising the cost of building materials, developing low-cost residential layouts with basic infrastructure, and constructing affordable housing estates for civil servants and members of the organised private sector.
In addition, the National Housing Policy and Programme should incorporate community housing schemes, particularly for semi-urban settlements.
Govt should address issue through affordable mortgage loans with low interest rates – Anthony Sani, ex ACF scribe; Kaduna
The experts gave three factors driving the high rents namely – inflation, foreign exchange volatility and housing deficits. They are not wrong. The listed underlying causes are not the exclusive preserve of housing, but affect the costs of all goods and services in the economy. Efforts have been made by the government to address the challenges posed by the named driving forces. The government should therefore ramp up efforts at reducing the inflation, exchange volatility and the housing deficits through affordable mortgage loans with low interest rates. That way, most people can build their houses and reduce the housing deficits.
Govt should implement comprehensive housing recovery plan – Rev. Emmanuel Olorunmagba, cleric; Kaduna
The alarming increase in house rents across Nigeria is yet another symptom of the deep economic crisis confronting the country. When rents rise between 100 and 150 per cent within a short period, it is not merely a housing issue; it is a national economic emergency that affects workers, students, artisans, young families, and small businesses.
The soaring cost of accommodation is the result of a combination of high inflation, the depreciation of the naira, rising prices of building materials, high interest rates, insecurity that has displaced millions of people, and decades of inadequate investment in affordable housing. These are challenges that require decisive leadership rather than excuses.
To address this skyrocketing house rents and accommodation crisis in the country therefore, there is a need for the government to immediately implement a comprehensive housing recovery plan.
In the first place, it should stabilise the economy by pursuing policies that reduce inflation and restore confidence in the naira. Until the broader economy is stabilised, housing costs will continue to rise.
Govt should make building materials affordable – Chukwuka Jonathan Enegide, lawyer; Benin
As the population keeps growing, as you begin to see urban rural drift, facilities will suffer congestion and lack. That is one. Then looking at the inflationary trend, especially in the area of building materials, it becomes very difficult for new houses, new homes to be built. The government is also not helping matters. The government has not provided residential buildings by way of housing schemes. We used to have that in the time of Shagari during the NPN days.
It is also common knowledge that as soon as the president assumed office, in fact before the very few seconds after he was sworn in, he declared that subsidy was gone. And the rippling effect of that statement is that every other thing was gone.
Because the Nigeria economy and all you can think of is tied to oil and oil revenue and all that. So, what used to be quasi or you know, subtle subsidies have been thrown up overboard and there are no checks. The way forward is that the government should intervene in the area of making building materials affordable.
Govt should ban all housing agents – Ajele Sunday, activist; Benin
The issue of house rent surge in the cities is manmade. It is simply a case of how Nigerians underdevelop Nigeria.
Take for instance, how come the houses we built in our villages are just there and we look for people to live in them freely just to help us to maintain them. Why do we not consider inflation, foreign exchange volatility etc? It is just greed and our value system, which is money. Of what use is the landlords associations coming together to increase rent? Most of the skyrocketing house rent is caused by housing agents. Is it not madness? Therefore, let there be a government regulatory body on house rent, and let the government ban all housing agents, as well as build more houses as the population is ever increasing.
Govt should invest heavily in transport infrastructure that connects rural communities to major cities – Paul Chimodo, ICT expert; Port Harcourt
The government should look beyond building houses and invest heavily in transport infrastructure that connects rural communities and smaller towns to major cities. Expanding rail and affordable mass transit will allow workers to live in cheaper locations while commuting easily to urban centres, reducing the intense demand for housing in city centres and naturally easing rent prices. At the same time, the government should boost affordable housing through public-private partnerships, low-interest mortgages, and incentives for developers, while tackling inflation and reducing the cost of building materials. A combination of better transport links and increased housing supply offers a more sustainable solution to Nigeria’s accommodation crisis.
Govt should give tax incentives to landlords, developers to keep rents affordable – Clement Emmanuel, student; Port Harcourt
To fix Nigeria’s rent crisis quickly, states should pass laws limiting advance rent to one year, since many landlords now demand two or three years upfront. This won’t cost government money but gives immediate relief. The Central Bank must also continue tightening measures to reduce inflation and stabilise the naira, because imported building materials keep getting costlier and landlords transfer that cost to tenants through higher rent.
Government should also give tax incentives to landlords and developers who keep rents affordable, rather than relying on slow, expensive mass housing projects. State rent tribunals should be set up or strengthened so tenants can report unfair rent hikes and get quick resolution. These two steps, capping advance rent and controlling inflation, offer the fastest and most realistic relief given Nigeria’s current economic situation.
Govt should bring about measures to bring down cost of building material – Ojisi Iro Ogbaja, public affairs analyst; Umuahia
It is a known fact that the economic value of land in most parts of the country has risen beyond the reach of an average income earner, while house rents have astronomically gone far above the reach of the poor. Presently, it is difficult for any low income earner to buy a plot of land in most cities not to talk of erecting a house.
The soaring inflation in the country has made the cost of building materials to go out of the reach of an average Nigerian. The government should put up measures in place to bring down the cost of building material to enable people build more houses which in turn force down house rent.
Govt should enact, implement rent control laws-Charles Chinekezi, journalist; Aba
The major reason given by landlords for this sharp increase in house rent is the high cost of building materials. I agree with them to an extent. For instance, a bundle of long span zinc that sold for N90, 000 in 2022, is now sold for over N500, 000. The same goes for other building materials, but the irony of it is that some landlords who built their houses about 50 years ago are equally involved in this unwholesome increment in house rents. The governments across the country should, apart from building housing units, enact rent control laws and implement them effectively to checkmate the activities of shylock landlords.
Govt should ensure there is ceiling for rent – Celestina Ogona, student; Yenagoa
There should be some form of government intervention because the free will that landlords increase rent indiscriminately is alarming. Sometimes you move into an apartment with the hopes that you will maintain the same rent over a period of time. But within a twinkle of an eye, you are given a notice in writing that rent has been increased. The increment is not even by a small percentage, but most times almost twice what you were paying before. Most occupants now find it difficult to maintain their apartments. This has become a huge toll on the people. There should be some sort of regulation by the state government or the federal government, as the case may be. This issue is gradually becoming an epidemic across Nigeria. The government should intervene to ensure there is a ceiling for rent in one year that landlords cannot go beyond.
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