Barakat Odunuga-Bakare, the Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Housing, has announced plans to enforce the state’s monthly rental scheme before the end of 2024 or early next year.
She made this known during a recent press briefing of the Lagos State Real Estate Regulatory Authority in Ikeja, Lagos.
Odunuga-Bakare stated, “We all see what is being done in other climes, rents are collected monthly. Hence, we are looking and hoping that before the end of the year, or by early next year, we will be able to implement the policy of monthly rental.
Also, the rental would be charged according to tenants’ earnings.”
She further explained that the implementation would begin within the public sector as a test-run to ascertain its viability. The N5 billion allocated for the scheme remains untouched, indicating the state government’s commitment to its realization.
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“The fact that the scheme has been slow to take off shows that the Lagos State Government is still trying to perfect one thing or the other,” Odunuga-Bakare added.
Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu had previously advocated for a monthly rental system, noting that the current yearly rent model was inadequate, especially for low- and middle-income earners. He urged policymakers to consider this recommendation and initiate a regulatory framework to facilitate the transition.
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The Governor emphasized that Lagos was already working on modalities for monthly rents to accommodate residents not interested in the state’s homeownership scheme.
The move towards a monthly rental system has garnered support from various stakeholders, including the then Minister of Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, who highlighted the inequalities created by the yearly rental system and its impact on housing affordability for low-income earners.”