Aba residents decry hike in house rent

Residents of Aba, the commercial nerve centre of Abia State have cried out against the hike in rent for houses and business places amidst the current economic crisis in the country.
The AUTHORITY investigations showed that a few months ago, the rent for a one-room apartment in some parts of Aba was between N2,000 and N2,500 depending on the location.
At present the rent for such apartments has gone up to N3,000 per month while a single room apartment with toilet, bathroom and kitchen popularly called self-contain goes for N10,000 monthly. Also, a two-bedroom apartment has gone up to N12,000 and above per month.
Depending on the age of the building as well as its location also, a three-bedroom apartment goes for between N15,000 and N20,000 per month
Apart from the new increase in house rents, residents of the town are also worried by the activities of most of the agents who make things more cumbersome for would-be tenants by charging exorbitant fees for their services.
A resident, Mr Charles Ojimba had told The AUTHORITY that, “they (agents) ask for 30 per cent of the rent to be paid to get you an apartment, and this does not include the registration fee. At the end, it may take one registering with up to 10 agents to facilitate one’s search. You can imagine that after all the rigours one is given a very out¬rageous rent for a small apartment in parts of the city.”
Other residents attributed the hike in rent to the reconstruction of roads in several parts of the city, which has made most property in the town better positioned and attractive which their owners are cashing in on.
Mrs Juliet Osondu (a resident) said: “You see, with most of the roads rehabilitated, the land¬lords have seen that their buildings are now at a better position to attract more rent than when the roads were abandoned. For them, it is also their own dividend of democracy which the governor has extended to them by fixing the roads.”