Sudden hikes and forced relocations ignite lamentation across all area councils

By Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Romanus Ugwu,  Idu Jude, Sola Ojo, Adanna Nnamani, Okwe Obi, Fred Ezeh, and Ndubusi Orji,

Abuja’s  housing market in 2025 is in crisis as rent increases have become abrupt, steep, and widespread across all area councils. In every neighborhood—from central districts like Garki, Utako, and Wuse to the outskirts including Karu, Orozo, Kuje, Lugbe, Kubwa, and Old Nyanya—residents share a common lament: rents have surged by 40-60%, often without any prior notice from landlords.

Many tenants find themselves blindsided by sudden hikes delivered just days before payment deadlines, coupled with threats of eviction if they cannot meet the new demands. This  harsh reality has forced countless families and individuals to abandon their previous homes and relocate to “friendlier” or more affordable areas.

However, even these suburbs are experiencing rising rents as they absorb the overflow of displaced tenants, creating a ripple effect throughout the city. The forced moves disrupt community ties, increase commuting burdens, and deepen financial strain, especially for low- and middle-income earners.

Rents that were once modest—such as two-bedroom apartments renting for around N700,000 annually—have now climbed to between N1.5 million and N2.5 million or more depending on location. Self-contained apartments previously affordable at N400,000 to N600,000 are now fetching rents of N1.5 million to N2 million.

Tenants report sharing accommodations, moving further to satellite towns, or even facing homelessness due to these escalating and unpredictable costs.

Landlords often attribute the increases to global and local inflation, soaring construction and building material costs, and overall economic pressures. Tenants, however, complain of exploitation and the absence of regulations to protect them from arbitrary rent hikes.

The escalating rental crisis poses a growing threat to social stability, as more residents grapple with insecurity, overcrowding, and the indignity of housing precarity.

The widespread, almost universal, nature of these complaints across Abuja’s area councils highlights a systemic problem: a city racing to keep up with rapid population growth (approximately 4.85% annually) and urbanization, yet failing to provide adequate and affordable housing. Residents’ shared anguish calls urgently for government intervention in the form of rent regulation, tenant protections, and increased affordable housing initiatives to restore dignity and security to Abuja’s renters.

In all area councils, the lamentation is the same — the pain of sudden rent hikes without warning, the heartbreak of forced relocations, and the daily struggle to afford a basic necessity that should be a right: a safe and stable home. This human angle exposes the depth of the housing affordability crisis in Nigeria’s capital, where the cost of shelter is increasingly beyond the reach of the average resident.

For residents of City College, Karu, the increase in rents of houses have forced them to make serious adjustments, including treating the law.

Adeleke, a tenant in the area said: “The recent rent increase in Abuja has had a major impact on my finances and general wellbeing. My rent more than doubled within the last year, and yet my salary has remained the same. As a result, I’ve had to cut back on essential expenses like groceries, healthcare, and even transport just to afford housing.

Madam Rose, a food vendor, who has lived in the area for nearly seven years, serving artisans, bachelors, and spinsters, was compelled to take her landlord to court after he refused to be reasonable. The landlord had increased her rent from N350,000 to N600,000.

She explained: “I am just a petty trader, struggling to survive and feed my family.” She had pleaded with him to either keep the rent at N400,000 or give her time to relocate to a new plaza that was being developed nearby. However, he refused and issued an

ultimatum for her to leave. When she did not comply, he resorted to padlocking the premises, effectively locking her out. As a result, she took legal action, and the case is currently awaiting trial.

Francis, on his part, said: “My landlord increased the rent by over 100% without any prior notice or justification. One month, I was paying the usual amount; the next, I was told the rent had doubled. There was no formal communication or negotiation—just a message informing

me of the new rate and a deadline to pay or vacate the property.

This sudden hike felt completely arbitrary, especially since there were no improvements made to the property. It was very destabilizing and left me scrambling to either come up with the new amount or start searching for alternative accommodation in an already overpriced market.”

Comfort, a civil servant: “Previously, I was paying ₦500,000 annually, but the rent was recently increased to ₦1,200,000. That’s a 140% increase—nearly two and a half times what I used to pay. It’s an overwhelming jump that has significantly affected my financial stability.”

Daniel Danlami: “The rent increase has made my housing situation very difficult, but unfortunately, relocating or moving out of Abuja is not a viable option for me because my source of livelihood is based here. Despite the high cost, I have no choice but to stay and

try to adjust my budget in other areas. It feels like being stuck, unable to move, yet struggling to keep up with the rising cost of rent.’

Owolabi Emmanuel: “One of the biggest challenges as far as I am concerned is that most of the areas where rent is relatively affordable are plagued by serious security issues, including frequent cases of robbery and other crimes. It feels like a trade off either to pay extremely high rent in a safer neighborhood or risk personal safety just to find something within budget. This makes it very difficult to find decent and secure housing that is both affordable and livable in Abuja.”

Abraham said: “The landlord gave no prior notice before increasing the rent by over 100%, and there was no room for negotiation or discussion. It was either I pay the new amount or vacate the property.

“This abrupt change felt very unfair, especially given that there were no improvements made to justify the hike. The power imbalance between tenants and landlords makes it hard to speak up, as there’s always the fear of eviction or losing the little stability one has.

“The government has a critical role to play in regulating rent prices to protect residents from exploitation. There should be clear policies that set limits on how much and how often landlords can increase rent. Rent control laws, tenant protection frameworks,

and affordable housing initiatives are urgently needed. Without government intervention, the housing market in Abuja will continue to favour landlords at the expense of ordinary citizens, pushing more people into crimes, financial hardship and homelessness.

Denis Chinonso: “Yes, areas like City College in Karu LGA have been significantly affected by rent hikes. This may be because the area has relatively stable electricity, decent building structures, and is considered to be more secure compared to surrounding neighborhoods.

These factors make it more desirable, and landlords are using that demand as an opportunity to drastically increase rent, often beyond what average earners can afford.

“Rising construction costs and inflation definitely contribute to higher rent, but in many cases, landlords are using these factors as justification to increase rent far beyond reasonable limits. Despite the fact that some are old houses. While it’s understandable

that inflation affects everyone, the rate at which rent is increased often doesn’t match the actual rise in building or maintenance costs.

“I hope the government will step in, create and enforce policies that would regulate rent prices and protect tenants from sudden, excessive hikes. There should be a rent control framework that sets fair limits on increases, as well as tenant rights laws to prevent arbitrary evictions. Additionally, more investment should be made in affordable housing schemes to ease the pressure on the rental market. Without these measures, Abuja will become unlivable for average income earners, and the housing crisis will only get worse by leading to society collapse.”

For the residents of Kuje Area Council, the newly reconstructed dual carriage road has brought a combination of joy, pain and sadness.

Initially, the newly constructed roads with solar-powered streetlight, was a thing of joy to celebrate their escape from the torture and discomfort of the hitherto deadly potholes on the then dilapidated single lane road.

However, as days lapsed into weeks and months, the new road, which has apparently opened up the Council, resulting in the influx of residents from other parts of Abuja, turned into an agony with the landlords heartlessly jacking up, to the rooftop, the rents for both residential accommodation and shop outlets.

For some of them, the spike in the rent jumped from 60 per cent to more than 100 per cent surprisingly for mostly poorly-maintained old structures, with the landlords threatening the occupants to either comply or be ready to be ejected.

In the past eight months now, residents of Kuje Area Council have been gnashing their teeth to meet up the new demands of the landlords.

In fact, it has become easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than to get a shop and vacant building to occupy in the Area Council.

Apart from the scarcity of the shops, the ones formerly rented at a fee of N150,000 per annum is currently going for N400,000 or even more with many people jostling for the very few available ones.

Curiously, the number of persons demanding for shops and residential accommodation are spiraling by the day for understandable reason, the landlords are capitalising on circumstances to hike the rent prices.

A resident of Kuje, who identified herself as Stella, lamented in a chat with the Daily Sun, that she has been very unlucky securing a shop to start her weaving business after sinking over N5 million into the business to purchase the machines.

“The machines have been kept redundant since over one year now that I purchased them because of this constant increase in the price of rent. I need a bigger shop to contain the number of machines, but such shops are not coming cheap now, especially after the construction of the new road.

“Landlords have not helped matters the way and manner they are increasing the rent. Before the construction of the road, the rent for an average size shop was N150,000 to highest N200,000. But today, after the construction of the road, they jacked up the rent to the current price of N400,000 to N500,000.

“The painful aspect of it is that they did not even give any facelift to enhance the building. They are the same old structures they built over several years. The roofs of some of the shops are even leaking, but it is always a secondary consideration for the landlords.

“As it is now, I am stranded because there are no available shops currently,” she lamented.

Abdulahi Dan Soho, a civil servant residing in Karu Jikwoyi Phase II, urged the Federal Government to urgently address the rampant and uncontrolled rent hikes. He lamented that landlords are exploiting Nigeria’s fragile economy to defraud tenants.

“I am not against anyone increasing rent, but at the same time, I am not in support of anyone taking advantage of innocent Nigerians just because they are owners of dilapidated houses,” Dan Soho said.

“Many houses with over-bloated rent were built about four decades ago. So, the blame goes to the government for not regulating house rent in Nigeria.”

James Bamidele shared his regrets about not investing in land when he first arrived in Abuja. “I came to Abuja in 1998, and back then, a piece of land within the range of 50×50 was sold for #40,000. As a young man, I was overwhelmed by exuberance. I made some good money as a young graduate but failed to invest it. All these places were bushes then. If I had bought one plot of land, maybe I could have been one of the landlords,” he reflected.

However, he condemned the aggressive rent increases towards ordinary tenants.

“I suffer now because of my own ineptitude. My landlord insults me daily with unannounced rent increases. I have lawyers ready to challenge this in court because the law clearly states that rent cannot be increased without notice over a certain number of years. Abuja’s situation is becoming unbecoming.”

Cecelia Ugwuoke, a restaurateur, described arbitrary rent increases as a plague affecting many. “I call it a menace because it has become a plague. It’s a pandemic, more debilitating than just struggling to pay ordinary house rent in Nigeria.”

She explained how her landlord frequently visits her shop to monitor daily operations. “My landlord comes every day now to sit in my shop, counting the number of customers who come and go. This is so he can justify a rent increase on renewal. I stopped him from doing that. He wants to increase the rent by 50 percent after 2024 and make it a yearly occurrence without making any renovations. The house isn’t even newly constructed to warrant such claims.”

Legal expert, Mike Ucheke, explained the proper legal process regarding rent increases in Nigeria. “Landlords cannot simply decide to increase rent without following legal procedures. This includes serving a formal notice outlining the proposed increase and negotiating with the tenant.”

Ucheke emphasized that tenants’ agreement to the new rent is crucial. He stated: “A unilateral rent increase is contestable. If a landlord attempts to increase rent without following due process, it is considered unilateral and can be challenged by the tenant. The tenant can refuse the increase and, if necessary, take the matter to court. For example, in Lagos State, a tenant can apply to the court to declare the increase unreasonable, especially if there is no written tenancy agreement.”

On written agreements, he noted, “when a written tenancy agreement exists, it should clearly state the terms for rent increases. If the agreement specifies when and how rent can be increased, the law generally respects that agreement. However, if the agreement

is silent on rent increases, the tenant can still challenge an unreasonable increase.”

In Nyanya, Ibrahim Usman, an artisan living with his family at Area B by Hospital Road, Abuja, said: “Before now, a room and parlour self-contained used to cost between N250,000 and N300,000. Today, the same is between N700,000 and N750,000. Even at this price, houses are very scarce.

“Unlike before, when people feared coming here because of traffic, things are different now. Besides that, Nyanya is close to Abuja Central.”

“From Nyanya, it is just one stop to Wuse, Berger, and Area 1. The area hosts many security outfits, including the Army, Mobile Police, and Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps, making it more secure compared to other developing areas in the Federal Capital Territory.

“There is no real justification for this wicked surge in rent because these houses have been here for decades.”

Musa Shittu, a resident of Nyanya for over two decades and now a landlord, observed that “Shylock landlords in Nyanya are transferring their expenses on their properties. Some say the current economic situation forces them to increase rent to cope.”

He explained: “The funny thing is, most landlords don’t live here; some reside as far as Lugbe along the new Airport Road. The whole problem lies in the government’s failure to provide housing for its staff. Most residents here are civil servants who ideally shouldn’t be living in Nyanya. If the system worked, they should have houses closer to their ministries. If so, this madness wouldn’t have happened.

“Though I am not a tenant, we have a few landlords who are not greedy. They increase rent every three years by about five percent. So, not all landlords are wicked; some still fear God, though they are few.”

A lawyer living in one of the communities along Nnamdi Azikwe Airport Road, Idris Amos, described his experience with house hunting and accommodation in Abuja as a bittersweet one. According to him, “Going house hunting in Abuja is a Herculean task, because of the shortage of urban and affordable mass housing schemes by the ministry of housing and urban development, coupled with the increase of building materials cost. The vast majority of residents are left at the mercy of private individual house owners who embark on private residential building of houses and hand them over to house agents and property managers to market to prospective tenants looking for accommodation.

“Secondly, house agents are mostly contracted to search for different specifications of houses for a prospective tenant and must pay inspection fees which are fixed at different rates based on the said individual house agent when the intending tenant is taken to any available house for physical inspection.

“Thirdly, the exorbitant cost of renting houses in Abuja is at an all-time high, which is a result of artificial inflation by house owners and agents without cogent reason. The fact that there’s no fixed housing rates fee has left prospective tenants at the mercy of house owners, property managers, and house agents to fix various exorbitant high rates on their houses.

“Lastly, landlords’ constant increment of rent—it’s a very sad situation tenants have had to contend with inconsiderate house owners who, after one year of staying in their property, give the tenant notice of rent increases sometimes twice the previous amount before the next renewal, without giving the tenant the opportunity to negotiate such an exorbitant increase.”

Recounting the experiences of some of his clients who faced sudden astronomical hikes in house rents, Amos said: “Our client, Mr. Kehinde Isaac, rented a two-bedroom apartment in Phase 3, Kubwa, Abuja, for his company’s staff accommodation. He paid N1.5 million annual rent, plus agency (N150,000), legal (N150,000), and caution (N100,000) fees, totaling N1.9 million in January 2024. In December 2024, the property managers informed him the rent had been increased to N3.6 million for renewal in January 2025, with no room for

negotiation. They later sued him for recovery of premises and arrears. We challenged the increment for lack of adequate notice, and the matter was settled out of court after he paid the old rate of N1.5 million.

“Another client, Miss Kyata Iliya, rented a one-bedroom apartment in Bwari Extension, Abuja, after her transfer from Lagos. She paid N950,000 annual rent, plus agency (N150,000), legal (N150,000), and caution (N50,000) fees, totaling N1.3 million in March 2024. Ten months later, she was notified her rent would rise to N2.6 million from March 2025, without negotiation. She secured another job in Lagos and opted not to renew.”

The lawyer suggested ways to address the situation, stating: “The FCDA should urgently tackle Abuja’s housing deficit by collaborating with area council chairmen to develop affordable mass housing. The National Assembly ought to amend the Recovery of Premises Act to remove agency and caution fees for residential properties, allowing only rent and 10% legal fees. Rent increases should be allowed only after three years of tenancy, based on the property’s condition and local rates, and must be negotiable. The FCT minister, together with the Housing Ministry and Federal Mortgage Bank, should establish an FCT Mortgage Bank to offer 20-year flexible housing loan schemes for residents.”

Princess James, a resident of Trademore, Lugbe, shared her experience with a sudden rent hike. “I got a message just two months before my rent expired, saying the new fee is not 1.2 million from the N700,000 I previously paid,” she said. “I thought it was a prank but when I called the landlord, he insisted I either pay or move out. He said the cost of everything had gone up. I tried to explain that he didn’t just build the house recently and there have been no renovations, but he wouldn’t budge. I was more shocked when

I tried to find another place and discovered it was nearly impossible to get a decent one-bedroom in Lugbe for less than 1.5 million. I had no choice but to pay the new fee. It’s really sad. More than half my yearly salary goes to rent. I can’t even save.”

Gideon Paul, Chief Executive Officer of Gidi Steel Estate Management, described the real estate market as a “complex ecosystem involving landlords, property managers, caretakers, lawyers, and agents. Like any system, there are good and bad actors. The rising housing

costs have various causes—some houses are expensive due to landlords, others because of agents. For example, I’ve seen cases where landlords set a price, but agents advise increasing it to attract tenants willing to pay more, driven by the agent’s aim for higher commissions. Some agents also add extra charges not agreed by landlords, especially when managing the property.

“Many landlords independently set high rents and even welcome tenants leaving to raise prices. A major factor behind rental hikes is Nigeria’s economy and high inflation. As living costs rise, property owners tend to increase prices to make more income, often without adding value to their properties.”

To tackle these issues, Paul said: “We are helping influence pricing by educating landlords on earning income without raising rents unnecessarily. Many landlords lack real estate knowledge, including how to grow their portfolios and maximize market opportunities.

We are also developing an app to regulate real estate parties, including unscrupulous agents, aiming for balance and transparency. Additionally, we have set up discussion groups for renters to share experiences and gain insights, empowering them to navigate the rental market with confidence and avoid pitfalls. More initiatives are coming, which we will reveal in due course. Our commitment is to improve the real estate sector and make it fairer and more accessible for all.”

Lokogoma is surrounded by beautiful estates and suburbs. The nearby areas like Kabusa, Dogon Gada, Apo, and Dakwo are becoming more populated.

However, the estates themselves are only half occupied. This is largely due to the high cost of house rent. Even homeowners in many estates have refused to relocate to safer areas despite flood threats, because of the expensive rent.

A self-contained apartment for rent costs between N500,000 and N700,000 per year. Some agents raise it to as much as N800,000, including a caution fee of N50,000.

A one-bedroom apartment goes for between N1.2 million and N1.5 million, depending on its location.

A landlord in Dakwo, Didi Emmanuel, linked the high rent to the expensive building materials.

He said: “Building materials are expensive. In April, I bought a bag of cement for N8,500 at Kabusa market. Now it is N9,500. You have not included transportation to your site. Roofing sheets are also expensive. How much do you then expect me to fix the rent?

“To sink a borehole is around N1 million to N2 million. To get an electricity meter is about N170,000 for one. When you put all these together you will realize that what tenants pay is small. They should understand the cost of building materials.”

Another landlord, Dele Sodiq, said the high rent is due to the population growth around Kabusa axis.

“People are relocating from estates to suburbs. Of course, it is expected that the cost of house rent will increase.

“No house owner is ready to accommodate tenants who cannot pay rent. They will deliberately increase the price to scare some potential tenants.

“Security is another factor. House owners pay for security every month. Where do you expect us to get money to pay our monthly bill? It is from the rent.”

A tenant, Abimbola Idowu, said she paid almost N800,000 because she went through an agent, when the house on its own was about N500,000.

Idowu, a corps member, said: “When I moved into an estate in Lokogoma, the landlord pegged his house rent at N600,000. But because I went through an agent, I spent N800,000 including caution fee and the rest. It was not funny.

“The house is not up to standard. The walls were peeling off. The kitchen was not properly tiled. The landlord just collected his money and moved on. Sometimes, the landlords are understanding. But the agents are not.

“The government really needs to regulate the cost of rent in Abuja. It is becoming too much.”

At Orozo, Abuja, residents are lamenting the rising cost of rent and its impact on their lives. They said that while they were already complaining about the high cost of food, landlords suddenly and collectively began to raise the rent prices.

Patience Ekeji, a resident of Orozo who also runs a business in a plaza at nearby Jikwoyi, told our correspondent, “I am seriously facing this high rent challenge. My shop rent, which used to be N350,000, was recently increased to N800,000. My landlord at home also raised the rent without any suggestion from me or anyone else.”

She added that her landlord explained the hike by citing the high cost of living, emphasizing that the property is his investment and that he depends on the rent to support himself since he is retired from civil service.

Another resident, Mu’alim Ado, said he had to leave his house because of the steep rent increase. “I am currently squatting in one of the Mosques on Arab Road, Orozo, Abuja, because I couldn’t afford the rent for the place where I was staying with my friends. A self-contained room that was previously N120,000 is now N350,000. It’s a mud house with no water or other basic comforts.

“We stayed there through the dry season, but with the rainy season starting, we had to look for better shelter. That’s how we ended up at the mosque. Myself and a few others sleep there after the day’s hustle.”

Onyeka Abi, a trader in Jikwoyi, said he rented a shop in a newly built plaza for N1 million. “The owner said the high cost of building materials is why the rent is so expensive. He said it wasn’t an intentional hike but a result of the rising price of materials.”

The trader expressed concern that many tenants might struggle to renew their leases after the first year. “Unless there’s some miracle, we might find it difficult to renew because our sales don’t match the high expenses.

“The cost of running small businesses is becoming unbearable. Electricity, taxes, and other costs make it hard for us, and the burden eventually falls on the consumers.”

He called for serious government policies to protect small businesses from such harsh operating conditions.

Joshua Okoronkwo, who lives in Phase 3 Kubwa, Bwari Area Council in the Federal Capital Territory, is among many suburban residents whose rents were recently increased by landlords.

Okoronkwo told Daily Sun that he returned from work in May to find a letter from his landlord informing him that the rent for his two-bedroom apartment had increased from N600,000 to N1,000,000.

“When I complained, the landlord said the increase was due to rising costs of building materials. But mind you, the house is old and located in one of the waterlogged areas in Kubwa.

“I understand the need for an increase, but raising rent from N600,000 to N1,000,000—about a 70 percent hike—for a very old house and blaming it on building materials is not fair,” he said.

Similarly, another Kubwa resident named Amina told Daily Sun her landlord has raised her rent three times since January 2023, when she moved into a one-bedroom apartment on Gado Nasco Road.

“When  I moved in, the rent was N400,000. It was increased to N500,000 in 2024, and recently raised to N1,000,000.

“A few weeks before my last renewal, the landlord served me an ‘increase or quit’ notice, raising the rent from N500,000 to N700,000—meaning I had to move out if I didn’t accept the new rent.

“After a lengthy discussion, the landlord agreed to stick to the N500,000 for that renewal but said the next rent would be N700,000, which we both agreed on in January 2025. But just five months later, he informed me the rent had been increased to N1 million. When

I reminded him of our agreement, he said, ‘You have the options: either renew or quit.’

“The unfortunate part is that the one-bedroom apartment is very small—not enough to accommodate a whole family. It has a tiny sitting room, a very small toilet, and a kitchen where only one person can stand. It’s not a standard one-bedroom apartment. Also, there’s been no renovation; the soakaway has been broken since I moved in, and the landlord refuses to fix it despite the problems.

“The landlord won’t spend money on maintenance but complains about inflation and the rise in the dollar. Meanwhile, the building is old,” she concluded.