Why looking for an apartment in Lagos is frustrating

Authors:

Temi Iwalaiye

March 29, 2022 3:12 PM

There is nothing as annoying as trying to rent an apartment in Lagos.

Finding a house in Lagos can be frustrating [Gistday]

As you are shown different apartments in Lagos, you'll see some apartments that will make you question the sanity of the person showing you these places but alas when you look at his face you will see that he does have a straight face and he is serious.

Lagos is faced with so many housing challenges because of its overpopulation and the government does not do anything about it.

Here are some likely experiences if you are looking for accommodation in Lagos;

Paying the agent's transportation fare

If you do not have a car then you are in for an experience. If you are visiting about five houses, you are paying the transportation fare for yourself and the agent. The funniest part for me when I was looking for a house was how he kept picking other ‘agents’ to show him other houses and I had to pay for their transport too.

Getting shown small houses without windows

Some Lagos landlords do not build houses like they expect humans to live in them. How else do you explain a house with no windows? When I asked the owner of the house or the caretaker why there are no windows, he pointed at an opening by the door.

There was this joke on Twitter about how someone went to check out a house that was too small and as he complained to the agent, he said it only appears small and it will stretch over time.

Getting shown a dirty, disgusting apartment or an uncompleted building.

Simple real estate courtesy means you should clean up before showing someone an apartment but these agents don’t care, they take you into a dusty, dirty house and expect you to consider living there.

When an agent shows you an uncompleted building he is selling you pure hope because how would I pay for a house that has is not even plastered?

Finding the perfect house but the landlord is from hell

Let’s say you find a new clean house and just as you are about to negotiate payment, the landlord brings up something to stop you. Maybe he says you must work in a bank, be married to a particular ethnic group or he or she gives you times when you should be at home and things you should or shouldn't do. It is all so tiring.

Paying exorbitant agency fees

At the end of the day, and after showing you some very terrible but expensive apartments, you will still be asked to pay him money and let’s not even forget that the agency fee is already 50% of the rent when you finally get an apartment you want. Outrageous.