President John Dramani Mahama has urged tenants to report landlords who seek excessive rent advances, as he advocates for stronger enforcement of housing regulations to combat widespread misuse in the rental sector.
During a meeting with organised labour at the Jubilee House in Accra on Tuesday, March 17, the President stated that rising lodging costs were putting a burden on household incomes and reducing access to decent housing.
“Housing is a major problem, and for households, it is consuming their income. We need to have a national housing dialogue and decide how, between the private sector, government, and labour, we can come together and come up with a social housing policy to make sure that we provide affordable housing for workers to purchase on a mortgage or to be able to rent at a favourable cost,” he stated.
President Mahama connected Ghana’s housing shortage to the ongoing demand for large rent advances, pointing out that the mismatch between supply and demand had allowed certain property owners to take advantage of the situation.
“The reason why the private house owners are taking advantage is because of the deficit in housing. We have the rent court, and we say do not take more than six months of rent advance, but the one who is renting and the house owner are both not prepared to go to the rent court,” he continued.
He encouraged tenants to utilise the legal systems already in place by reporting landlords who violate the law, guaranteeing that penalties will be imposed as needed.
“You can go and report him to the rent court, and we will hold that landlord accountable,” he reiterated.
The President’s comments coincide with growing public outcry over the pervasive practice of landlords requesting up to two years’ rent upfront, in defiance of legal restrictions.
The scenario has drawn a lot of criticism for being exploitative and a significant obstacle to cheap housing, especially for those with low and intermediate incomes.
In order to solve the structural issues in the housing sector, including the creation of a comprehensive social housing policy that strikes a balance between the interests of renters, landlords, and the state, President Mahama said that a more extensive national dialogue on housing would be required.
Source: newsthemegh.com