Ekiti state moves to curb rising house rents

News Update

Ekiti State Government has condemned the soaring house rents across the state, stressing that it will not sit idle while residents are overcharged for accommodations.

The Special Adviser to the Governor on Housing and Mortgage Development, Dr Gboyega Oloniyo, said the state’s profile as an investment destination has grown, attracting more people who need adequate housing.

He noted, “We are now an investment hub, and a lot of people will be coming in. They need to have a befitting shelter. So the government must ensure that people get value for money when it comes to estate rents and valuations in Ekiti State.”

Oloniyo spoke in Ado Ekiti on Saturday during a one-day house rent reduction sensitisation programme themed ‘Connecting homeowners and making accommodations accessible to all in Ekiti State’.

The event brought together stakeholders in the real estate sector, including government officials, landlords, estate agents, surveyors, and valuers.

After extensive deliberations, Oloniyo announced the establishment of an estate agents tribunal, the Estate Agents Committee of Ekiti State, comprising representatives from various stakeholders to address arbitrary rent practices.

Acknowledging population growth and development in the state, Oloniyo said, “Very worrisome is the emerging trend where public infrastructure investments are immediately followed by sharp and sometimes arbitrary rent increases by some property owners. In addition, the rising practice of excessive agency charges and ‘all-inclusive facility fees’ has further burdened tenants. These realities have made decent accommodation increasingly unreachable for many ordinary Ekiti residents.”

He added, “Government cannot fold its arms; we must ensure that things are properly regulated so that people are not cheated unnecessarily. People are being cheated now because of layers of obnoxious charges they call a total package. A landlord will put a house out at N90,000, and it will get to end users at N220,000. Things like this must change. That is why we are saying the government will not continue to fold its arms to see quacks or anybody make life difficult for people.”

Oloniyo urged landlords, estate agents, and community leaders to partner with the government by reviewing rent levels, improving housing standards, and prioritising residents’ welfare. He noted that under Governor Biodun Oyebanji, “The state government is building a lot of estates now. There are many houses under this administration that are springing up in the nooks and crannies of the state. In the provision of houses, Ekiti State Government too is doing a lot, but we still need to continue on that strength.”

He also appealed to the federal government to explore ways to reduce the cost of building materials, saying, “I strongly believe that the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu will touch on all these things. So we are calling on the FG to pay attention to that.”

The Chairman of the Ekiti State House of Assembly Committee on Lands, Housing, and Physical Planning, Yomi Ayorinde, commended the meeting and the collaborative approach. He said, “We have listened to one another, we have identified areas where reduction can happen because affordable rents mean so well for everybody and the economy of the state. We have reviewed our position, and a committee has been set up. The committee will sit, and it will generate an actionable report. The House of Assembly, that I represent, will ensure that legal teeth are provided for such a report, convert the report into a law that is implementable so that we can streamline or standardise the rates being collected by agents.”

Also speaking, the Director General of the Ekiti State Bureau of Community Communications, Mrs Mary Oso-Omotosho, said, “We will continue to have the conversation, so that we will have a lasting solution to the rate at which house rent is skyrocketing in this state.” She added that the committee will oversee estate agents’ activities, advise on rent rates, and intervene where legal frameworks are needed to curb quacks in the sector.

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Recall that Media reported that Oyebanji, disturbed by high rents, had begun moves to regulate the real estate sector in the state, particularly in the capital and host communities of tertiary institutions. Oloniyo had then stated, “The governor is interested in making sure that in the real sector, we should moderate and have regulations that will make life easy for the citizens of Ekiti State.

“The governor wants to ensure that houses are not only available, but they should also be accessible and affordable for the people. We will not relent on the issue of the bad eggs; flushing them out is our responsibility. The laws and regulations, by the time they are in place, will solve the issue of landlords raising their house rents arbitrarily. The laws that will be put in place soon will right the wrongs. The laws are coming.”