Economic Meltdown Responsible for House Rent Increase …Estate Developer

 From POLYCARP IFEANYI (ONITSHA) 
The Onitsha-based Estate Developer and Chief Executive Officer of God’s kingdom Real Estate Limited Onitsha, Anambra State, Mayor Paulinus Mbanugo has identified global economic meltdown, insecurity, Herdsmen mayhem, Naira devaluation, and alleged government insensitive to the citizens as some causes of high increase in house rent.

Speaking to our correspondent on the issue of incessant increments in house rent and lack of estate management, Mayor Mbanugo disclosed that even some of their colleagues who are still operating as estate managers could only cope up due to no alternative mean to sustain themselves and their families.

“Our duties are to assist people to buy lands and collect rents or landlords. We go to villages and meet people, discuss with them and buy lands from them which we hire bulldozer, survey the land and sold  same to individuals who might develop it as residential homes, commercial purposes and buildings of shops and offices”

He revealed that most traders have realized the paramount aspect of investing in estate than investing in securing stocks, pointing out that since Naira value slashed and businesses are no longer booming, many landlords depend on their house rent while many who wish to buy lands could not be able to raise cash and buy their choice of lands.

“Other factors that contributed to the high increase in house rent could be payment of taxes, remittance of interest of loan to the bank because many landlords borrowed money from banks to build their house as well as imposes all their domestic expenditures on the house rent they collect from tenants” 

Mayor Mbanugo continued that; “not all landlords are guilty of the arbitrary increment of house rent. Some landlords are so kind that, they never increased the rent of their building constantly like some of their counterparts.” 

He, however, expounded that estate managers are facing a lot of challenges, which he mentioned as lack of prompt payment of rent by tenants, a potential buyer(s) are no longer patronizing them, tenants no longer pay their rents in arrears.

“We supposed to seek soft loans from the government to enhance our business but it is not easy to issue to the severe economic predicament in the country which everybody’s a witness. 

“At any period the economy of our nation improves for better, we would be able to seek for soft loans from the government like our colleagues who are in the developed world.” He posited.