By Arinze CHIJIOKE

In Enugu State, in Nigeria’s Southeast region, securing affordable housing has become a growing challenge for many residents. Spiralling agency and legal fees, coupled with arbitrary charges imposed by landlords, are pushing accommodation beyond the reach of ordinary citizens. Although a bill aimed at regulating these exploitative practices was introduced at the Enugu State House of Assembly, it has yet to be passed, leaving tenants vulnerable and the housing crisis unchecked.

When Ifunanya Eze returned from her wedding in February 2025, she and her husband were eager to begin a new chapter together. One of their first tasks was to find a modest two-bedroom apartment they could call home.

Before then, her husband had managed in a cramped self-contained flat, but marriage brought the need for more space. The little room, already overflowing with his belongings, could hardly accommodate two people, let alone the life they hoped to build.

But what should have been a simple search for a home quickly turned into a frustrating ordeal. The couple soon found themselves priced out of many options in Enugu, where arbitrary charges collected by agents, lawyers, and landlords are worsening the housing crisis.

“With a budget of N500,000, we started searching for houses in the Agbani area,” she recalled. “But each one we saw within that budget came with an extra cumulative fee of N450,000 to N500,000 for agents, lawyers, management and caution.

Eze and her husband could not afford the additional costs, so their search dragged on. As time passed, prices climbed even higher. What was once N500,000 for a two-bedroom apartment had now risen to N600,000 and more across areas like Emene, where they also scouted for accommodation. The experience was draining as Eze often had to close her business just to go house hunting, as their rent deadline drew nearer.

Despite the high costs, the apartments were quickly taken. Each time she went searching, she paid N2,000 inspection fee to an agent, and by the end of it all, she had spent more than N200,000 on transport and inspection fees alone.

After nearly five months of searching, the couple finally settled for a one-bedroom apartment, the only option within reach. The rent was N350,000, but the total cost rose to N650,000 including an agent fee of N100,000, a legal fee of N100,000, and a caution fee of N100,000.

One of Nigeria’s most expensive cities, according to NBS

Eze’s story mirrors the struggles of thousands of tenants across Enugu, where the dream of affordable housing is slipping out of reach. Studies and reports show that Enugu is battling a growing housing deficit driven by rapid urbanisation, population growth, and the absence of effective pro-poor housing policies.

Extra charges such as agent, legal, and management fees now make up as much as 45 per cent of total housing costs in Enugu. For many tenants, rent is only half the story in a housing market that has become “the new oil.”

In its Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released in April 2025, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) listed Enugu as one of Nigeria’s most expensive states to live in, with the highest year-on-year inflation rate at 35.98 per cent. This steep cost of living is largely fuelled by surging housing expenses.

“In April 2025, the All-Items inflation rate on a year-on-year basis was highest in Enugu (35.98 percent), Kebbi (35.13 per cent), and Niger (34.85 per cent), while Ondo (13.42 per cent), Cross River (17.11 percent), and Kwara (17.28 per cent) recorded the lowest rise,” the NBS report stated.

In Enugu, high-end areas such as Independence Layout, GRA, New Haven, and estates like WTC and Centenary top the price list. But even formerly affordable neighbourhoods; Trans Ekulu, Abakpa, Asata, Thinkers Corner, Nike, Emene, Garki, Uwani, and Ugwuaji, have now seen rent prices skyrocket.

With the rush for housing, some landlords have also introduced discriminatory conditions, such as state of origin and marital status, before leasing their properties. In some cases, prospective tenants must submit their names and contact information and wait to be called for interviews.

Where is the new tenant bill?

Somewhere, inside the office of the Attorney General of the State, a Bill for a Law to Amend the Landlord and Tenant Law, CAP. 101, Laws of Enugu State, 2024, is waiting to be attended to or is slowly being attended to. Kingsley Udeh, who was recently nominated as the Minister of  Science and Technology, was the Attorney General at the time the bill was introduced in February 2025.

Sponsored by the member representing Nkanu East State Constituency, Okey Mbah, the bill was intended to regulate agency, legal and other fees in tenancy agreements. It capped agent and legal fees (payable to a qualified legal practitioner) at 10 per cent of rent payable by the prospective tenant.

“With effect from the commencement of this law and notwithstanding any provision in other enactments, agent fee chargeable for procuring any accommodation in the State shall not exceed 10 per cent of rent paid by the prospective tenant,” part of the bill read.

“No tenant shall be caused to pay any further premium in acquiring any accommodation except legal fee payable to a qualified legal practitioner for the purpose of preparing the landlord and tenant agreement, and such fee shall not exceed 10 prt cent of the rent.”

The bill abolished caution, management and other hidden/unjustified charges.

On March 26, 2025, the House of Assembly held a public hearing after the bill scaled the first, second reading and committee stages. After the hearing, it was submitted to the executive for input. However, as of November, eight months after the public hearing, nothing has been heard of the bill. And there are doubts in certain quarters that the government might be under pressure to drop it.

When contacted, Mbah, sponsor of the bill, said that because it was a private member bill, it had to be sent to the executive for input. He confirmed that the bill is now in the office of the attorney general, who is supposed to look at it and make changes where necessary.

“If everything is okay, the bill will be sent back to us to tidy it up, pass it and send it to the governor for assent,”. “We may go back to the committee stage if the executive raises any concerns. But there is no idea of when it will be attended to.”

Mbah said that his decision to sponsor the bill was informed by complaints of residents in the state.

“The bill has enforcement provisions. It proposed a N500,000 fine or a prison term, or both, for offenders, “he said. “Any person or persons who contravene any of the provisions of this law is liable, on summary conviction, to a fine of N500,000 or imprisonment for a term of six months or to both. If it goes as planned, residents will now have where to go and report, and whoever is found wanting, with evidence, will go in for it,”.

Housing agents making it big

In Enugu, housing agents have become the biggest beneficiaries of the city’s housing crisis. What used to be a side hustle for a few middlemen has turned into a booming industry where almost everyone now claims to be involved. From businessmen and women to commercial bus drivers and even students, many have joined the hunt for desperate tenants seeking accommodation.

In a city where demand far outweighs supply, the housing business has become the new oil, a fast-moving market of exploitation, inflated prices, and unchecked profiteering that leaves tenants at the mercy of agents who dictate the rules.

Typically, agents describe listings as either direct or indirect briefs. A direct brief means the advertising agent retains the entire commission, while an indirect one involves sharing the agent fee between the original advertiser and whoever brings in a tenant.

To inspect a house, an individual is charged a non-refundable inspection fee of N2,000 and sometimes more, whether or not they eventually rent the property. This is separate from the standard agent’s commission, which typically ranges between 15 and 20 per cent of the annual rent.

Chidera Joseph is an agent. He told this reporter that he charges a standard fee of N50,000 for a single room, N100,000 for a self-contained apartment, N150,000 for a room and parlour, N200,000 for two bedroom and parlour and N250,000 for three bedroom. He, however, said that many agents go ahead to hike their own prices and get unsuspecting individuals to pay.

In July 2024, a civil rights activist and member of the Civil Liberties Organisation (CLO) in Enugu, Kindness Jonah, led a protest against the hike in house rent in the state, calling on  the Enugu State House of Assembly and the administration of Peter Mbah to regulate the activities of lawyers and other agents whom they blamed for the development.

The demonstrators carried placards with inscriptions such as, “High rent in Enugu, no lawyer fee; high rent in Enugu, no agency fee”; “high rent in Enugu, stop legal fee, management and caution fee”; “no agency fee, no lawyer’s fee among others.”

“A landlord does not need agency, a landlord does not need a lawyer”, Jonah said during the protest. “A landlord should write his agreement in common English. Go and buy a seal in the High Court and put it there.”

What the new law says about agents

Introducing the bill did not come without backlashes, especially regarding the aspect that had to do with the certification of who becomes an agent. According to the bill, the Enugu State Housing Development Corporation, through its managing director, shall see to it that any person who intends to operate as an agent in the State shall apply to the corporation to obtain a permit, and this shall be subject to renewal annually.

This reporter had found from interviews with agents that many of them do not belong to any body that regulates their activities, a major contributor to why they impose whatever amounts they want as agent fees. “The one we have is not active and so, belonging to it is a matter of choice for many of us,” Joseph said.

During the hearing, Mbah said that the Enugu State Branch of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) insisted that they will be in charge of the certification and not any government agency, as contained in the proposed bill.

“But we told them that we can bring them in to train those who become agents and ensure that they are registered but the government will be responsible for certifying who is an agent.”

Onah said that the body claimed that they do not charge more than 10 per cent.  The Nigerian Bar Association also claimed that they charge between 3-5 per cent of rent as legal fees; all of these run contrary to the findings of this investigation.

Lawyers and landlords are not left out of the profit chain.

At Independence Layout Phase One, for instance, a self-contained room with a rent of N300,000 came with additional demands of N100,000 legal fee, N50,000 caution fee, 50,000 management fees, a carton of malt, N50,000 for the caretaker, and N100,000 for the agent. That is an additional N350,000.

A one-bedroom apartment in New Haven was advertised with a rent of N700,000 but with additional demands amounting to N650,000 including N150,000 legal fee, N150,000 caution fee, N150,000 management fee, and N200,000 agency fee.  A two-bedroom apartment around New Market was listed for N2.3 million, broken down as N1.5 million rent, N200,000 legal fee, N200,000 management fee, N100,000 service charge, and N300,000 agent fee. Even for smaller apartments, the charges are steep.

Similarly, a three-bedroom flat at Trans Ekulu by New GRA was advertised at N2.7 million — N1.8 million rent, plus N300,000 legal fee, N200,000 caution deposit, N100,000 management fee, and N300,000 agent fee. That is an extra N900,000 aside from the rent itself. For some locations, facilities such as kitchen cabinets, wardrobes, water heaters, and POP ceilings also determine the cost of rent.

The so-called legal, management, and caution fees often included in rent payments usually go directly to the landlord and not to any lawyer, as is often claimed. Worse still, the caution fees, which should be refunded to tenants when no damage is found, are rarely, if ever, returned. In many cases, landlords even act as their own agents.

These additional charges often push total housing costs far beyond the reach of average earners.

Forced to move back home

With the cost of housing not getting any better, low- and middle-income earners continue to be pushed into distant locations, unplanned settlements and sometimes, back to their communities. An example is Chizzy Ani, a media personality who comes to Enugu to work from Agbani, a community located about 30 minutes away from the city.

In 2023, Ani’s search for a two-bedroom apartment took him to the Amechi area in the state, where a landlord asked him to buy 6 cartons of beer, including two cartons each of Hero, Life and Stout. The rent was N600,000, but the agent, caution and management cost N700,000, taking the total to N1.3million

“I asked him if he wanted to open a beer parlour and he said it was to welcome me. There was no water in the compound, you had to buy and I was begging him to cut the cost, but he insisted. I would have spent some more to fix the apartment.”

Because he could not afford the amount, he got a self-contained apartment for his family while he comes from Agbani, his community, to Enugu daily for work.

“If I have that amount, I will get a land and develop it gradually. I cannot be working yearly only to pay all the money to a landlord.”

Currently, anybody searching for an accommodation in Enugu looks for where they can stay for several years to avoid paying recurring agent and legal fees each time they move.

Government’s imposition of taxes

Some landlords who spoke to this reporter blamed the situation on the imposition of numerous fees as a result of what they describe as ‘burdensome taxes and levies’ imposed by the government. This include the Land Use Charge (LUC),  a mandatory charge for all property owners based on property value and location (residential, commercial, industrial) paid to the Enugu State Internal Revenue Service (ESIRS).

Just after renewing his house rent of N400,000, Izuchukwu Nnamdi, a resident of Amechi, was informed by his landlord that he would have to pay N600,000 subsequently. Sam had moved into the apartment two years earlier after his wedding.

“Now I have to work harder to be able to save up and build my own house, no matter how small, because I do not see myself working and making money only to pay landlords,” he said.

Nnamdi added that what makes the situation more troubling is that Enugu is predominantly a civil servant state, with most workers relying on meagre salaries to survive and care for their families.

“I wonder how people are supposed to pay such huge amounts as rent. It means you will be working and saving up for the landlord to eat,” he lamented.

In July 2024, Chairman of the Enugu State Internal Revenue Service, ENIRS, Emmanuel Nnamani, said that the state targets to generate revenue of N20 billion from Land Use Charge Payment by the end of the year, with the Geographic Information System, which had captured over 800,000 properties across all the 17 local government areas of the state.

This land use charge differs from ground rents, which is an annual tax or fees paid to the state government by the holder of a Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) for the use of a piece of land, whether developed or undeveloped, payable to land owners, such Ministry of Lands or Housing Development Corporations.

LUC rates vary widely across neighbourhoods: in upscale areas like GRA, Okpara Avenue and Fidelity Estate, findings show that landlords pay between N260,000 and N500,000 per plot yearly, depending on whether the property is residential, industrial, or commercial. In Trans Ekulu, the charge stands at about N76,000, while Abakpa residents pay N36,000. At the lower end, landlords in Emene and 9th Mile pay around N26,000, those in Gariki pay N57,000, and rural areas like Oji River are charged between N3,000 and N15,000.

Apart from the Land Use Charge, land owners across Enugu say they are also grappling with steep hikes in Certificate of Occupancy payable to the Ministry of Land or Housing Development, depending on who leased the land.  A C of O typically costs as much as N2million, which includes a registration fee, non-refundable fee, survey check, certificate publishing, ground rent and a processing fee. It is calculated in Square meters.

Findings show that a sqm goes for as much as N3000 in some locations.  When multiplied by 500sqm, which is the size of a plot of land, that gives you N1.5million. Other payments take it up to N2million.  In locations like Olympic Layout, it was gathered that a square meter costs N4000m, which is N2million by 500 sqm. There is also the rental income tax, which is pegged at 10% of the total rent paid.  A social media user shared a tax of N896,000 for an annual rental income of N6million.

Nnamani disagrees and insists that one cannot link rent increases to taxation. “The trend is a nationwide challenge driven by demand and supply, not state tax policies. “The shift from rental developments to private residences with gates has reduced housing stock, increasing rental pressure. “If we had more high-rise residential buildings, rent would drop,”.

He added that no taxes or levies in Enugu State are imposed outside what the law permits. “Tax administration in the state is guided primarily by the Personal Income Tax Act (as amended), we are not running our own differently,”.

“In other countries, people build skyscrapers, but here people build duplexes and bungalows and occupy them alone; hence the housing deficit will continue to expand,” he said, adding that estate developers were not helping the situation by mostly clearing lands and selling them off instead of building on them.  “Even when they do, it is mostly bungalows because that is the quick cash sale,”.

On Saturday, October 18, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Enugu State Geographic Information System (ENGIS), Chiwetalu Nwatu, announced that the state governor, Peter Mbah, had approved a 50 per cent reduction in fees for the processing of Certificates of Occupancy (C of O) and other land-related documents. The decision, according to Nwatu, is aimed at promoting property ownership, encouraging investment, and improving documentation compliance across the state.

“This initiative reflects Mbah’s commitment to inclusivity and economic empowerment, particularly for low-income earners and unregistered landowners who have long struggled with the cost of documentation,” Nwatu said.

Nwatu, however, noted that the discount will run for 45 days, starting from October 15, 2025, till November 29, to allow landowners and investors to obtain land titles and other related documents at half the regular cost.

Recently, the state governor, Mbah inaugurated a committee to carry out a comprehensive review of tax policies, rates, levies, and fees under the control of the state.

The committee, which has two weeks to undertake its assignment, is expected to benchmark Enugu State’s revenue practices against Lagos, Abuja, and other South East states as they relate to Land Use Charge, Certificate of Occupancy (C-of-O) fees, market levies and stall rents, business premises registration, signage and advertisement fees, among others, and recommend reforms to improve compliance, fairness, transparency, and revenue efficiency.

Any way out?

Nnamani believes that no amount of regulation will stop the activities of lawyers, agents and landlords that charge arbitrary amounts.  According to him, what legislation, like the bill that was introduced, can do is to regulate the percentage collection.

“What will stop it is the forces of demand and supply, he said. “The state government is working on increasing the housing supply by building blocks of 10-story buildings at Aguowa and other locations like the New Enugu. When that is done and tenants move into the buildings, landlords will begin to look for tenants themselves and not rely on agents and lawyers.”

Mbah, who doubles as the chairman of the House Committee on Housing and Foreign Investment, also confirmed that the government has since commenced the construction of 9,000 units of low-cost houses out of a proposed 30,000 across different locations for civil servants and low-income earners.

Real Estate experts like Fortune Ugonna also say that the government must create incentives for developers to come in and build more affordable homes.