I’m so worried. Last week, my agent brought a letter and dropped it with the gate man, informing me that my self-contained apartment rent has increased from N500k to N950k. That’s an extra N450k, which is above a 60% increase, for a self-contained apartment in Lagos. I don’t know what to do. I just started staying in the house this January. They increased everyone’s rent, but I’m the only one staying in a self-contained apartment, and I’m the only one whose rent increased by 60%. Others had a 30% increase or so—that’s for the 2-bedroom, 3-bedroom, and room-and-parlour apartments. I haven’t called the agent to tell him I’ve received it because I don’t even know how to negotiate. He was the one that helped me get the house, and based on how nice the house is, I’ve recommended more than five people to him. I don’t know if it’s because of that, but maybe he thinks the house is too good. As for the landlord, he is an extremely rude man—very rude. He talks to other tenants anyhow in the group chat.
If you call him on the phone, he’ll start shouting, saying we should call the agent. But the truth is, the two times I’ve called the landlord to complain about something, he has done it for me, though only after shouting and giving warnings. Then the agent will call me and shout as well. But the landlord always ends up doing it, like changing my bathroom tiles when I moved in and fixing one other thing. So, I’m so confused. I know if I see the landlord in person and beg him, he’ll reduce the rent, but it’s hard to see him—he’s hardly around. Should I call the landlord and beg, or should I call the agent? I can’t afford N950k at all; even the N500k is a lot for me. What if they gave me that increase to make me move out? The other tenants said I should ignore them and not say anything, then drag it out with them by next January—at least I’d get six months free. But I don’t want that. I love the location of the house; it’s very close to my work, and I don’t even spend money on transport.
The landlord is a very proud man. A day before we got the letter, there was an issue in the WhatsApp group between him and one other tenant. They exchanged words, and the next day I saw him in the compound frowning. I was so scared to greet him that I just stayed back and pretended I didn’t see him. Could that be why he increased my rent by the highest percentage? They know I can’t afford this rent. I’m just a young girl doing my small job to survive. Where will I get that kind of money in these hard times? Even finding a new place will be difficult and won’t favor me at all. What should I do? Should I close my eyes and call the landlord? If he shouts, he shouts. Hopefully, he reduces the rent. Or should I call the agent? What if they refuse to reduce it? What should I do? And this rent is minus the N10k we pay for security monthly and another N10k for electricity. Hey, please advise me!
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