LAGOS RESIDENTS DECRY SOARING RENTS, DEMAND URGENT GOVERNMENT ACTION
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By Aishat Momoh. O.
Residents across Lagos State have described the rising cost of house rents as suffocating, calling for urgent legislative and executive intervention to avert a deepening housing crisis.
In separate interviews on Tuesday, many residents lamented that rent now consumes nearly half—or more—of their annual income, leaving little room for savings or other essential expenses.
A 2023 report on Nigeria’s housing market showed that households spend between 50 and 70 per cent of their income on rent—well above the globally recommended 30 per cent threshold—describing the trend as symptomatic of structural dysfunction rather than a temporary spike.
Rasaq Adebanjo, a resident of Ogba, said the rising cost of accommodation had become unbearable.
“House rents in Lagos have become too expensive. Some landlords even state that rent increases automatically after three years. And that’s if you can find one you can conveniently pay for without it consuming your entire yearly income. It’s really hard,” he said.
A corps member, Mercy, recounted her shock while searching for accommodation shortly after arriving in Lagos. She said an agent demanded N1.5m for a mini flat in Surulere.
“I later realised I wasn’t alone after colleagues shared similar experiences. Even when three of us tried to pool money together for an apartment, we still couldn’t afford it,” she said, noting that she earns a N77,000 allowance and a N30,000 company stipend.
A fresh graduate, Peter, said he currently squats with a relative in Ogun State due to high rents in Lagos, adding that transportation costs have compounded his challenges.
Similarly, Damola Hafiz, a banker working in Obalende, said his landlord increased his rent from N800,000 to N900,000 for a single room in Ketu.
“When I said I couldn’t afford it, he asked me to move out. After seeing the reality during house-hunting, I had to return to beg him. It’s very hard these days,” he said.
Another tenant in Ikeja, Moses, said rising living costs have made saving nearly impossible, warning that the situation breeds frustration and desperation.
Reacting to the development, Ayodele Adio, an aspirant for the Lagos State House of Assembly seat in Eti-Osa, described the situation as a “rent crisis,” noting that many residents spend between 60 and 70 per cent of their income on rent and transportation combined.
Citing inflation data from the National Bureau of Statistics, Adio proposed tying rent increases strictly to official inflation rates. He also pledged to sponsor legislation to cap agency and legal fees at five per cent, mandate a minimum 12-month notice before rent increases, and restrict rent hikes to once every three years.
In addition, he called for stricter regulation of short-term rental platforms such as Airbnb, arguing that their expansion has reduced long-term residential housing supply.
Adio advocated the construction or facilitation of at least 20,000 housing units annually over the next decade to ease market pressure, stressing that government must play a more active role in housing delivery and mortgage reforms to improve access to affordable financing.
Efforts to get a reaction from the Lagos State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Gbenga Omotoso, were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report.
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