My Landlord!

“Landlording and long-term investing go hand-in hand. Being a landlord isn’t for everyone, but if you have the right personality and decision making skills then it’s a snap.”-Christopher Smith, Equity Scout

Some years back when there were fewer men occupying the earth, land was not a commodity for sale rather, people build and farm where they feel appropriate. But things have change; now the land, house and even farm are for sale.
It’s was about 2am midnight one Saturday when I heard the sound of my door opening, I immediately rush to the entrance only to get the shock of my life. My landlord was introducing a new tenant to occupy my already occupied apartment with two years left on my contract.
This is the story of Nana Yaa, a tenant in Accra. Her story is one of the many of the untold stories of how some landlords are treating tenants at their homes.
Landlord is fast becoming a profession rather than privilege; young men and women are relying on their parents’ inheritance and making money. They describe their newly found ‘love’- Real Estate!
I went round speaking to people about their experiences with their landlords.

The Good
Kofi, married with two children in Tema said his landlord came over for inspection, went through their food items, telling them what was unhealthy. He told them what kind of food they should prepared and the type of spices needed. He said sharing the electricity meter with the landlord is like ‘putting ones hands in the fire’. The landlord demands full payment of the bill from him.
James in Nungua got a call from his daughter (14 years old) that there were some grown men using their bath house. James came home to found out it was their landlord’s grandson and his friends using their bathhouse without permission. James said he has never met them and frankly don’t want them near his daughter.
Gloria lives in Spintex recalled that her (land lady) was older, widowed and had vision problems. She did help her with trips to the store, market, taking the trash out and cleaning up the room. Gloria even cooked to take to her. At the end, the landlord told her she had doubled the price of the rent and that the apartment has been given out to other applicants if she cannot pay the 100 percent increment.

The Bad
Afua lives in Kumasi narrated that the Landlord puts up a new rent fee immediately the government increase the price of fuel. She says though the Landlord lives with them in a compound house, she refused to pay utility bills and the rotational house cleaning.
Dennis had just got a new job in Sekondi as a teacher. He managed to get a two bedroom apartment for his family. His landlord seemed to be a nice gentleman but after 6 month the landlord locked the toilet for further use. He told me that his landlord asked him to pay a weekly amount for him to get access to the toilet.
Kwesi a father of 4 from Sunyani said his landlord won't allow him to have a cat and dog in the compound house! He says that cats and dogs eat birds (Chicks) and he likes chicken better, so he is forced to rear poultry.

The Ugly
Seth rented a two bedroom apartment in the middle of Accra in 1997. According to him, it was a very lovely place with a staircase and a good location to his workplace. His 'landlady' seemed to be a cool lady at first. The ‘Landlady’ told him she was in law school. Turns out she was a prostitute who entertained a lot of customers, almost every night. The ‘Landlady’ told him that he will be using his other bedroom for studies every night. It turns out to be the venue to entertain her ‘guests’.
A landlord was arrested over the death of a tenant after he evicted him at 1:00a.m in Sefwi-Buako in the Brong 'Ahafo Region.
The landlord had asked his in-law, who was the driver, to convey the belongings of the victim to wherever he wished to go. The landlord killed the tenant after he protested over the ungodly hour he was been evicted.
At Nima, a 40-year-old man was arrested for allegedly raping a 12-year-old daughter of a tenant. The landlord was reported to have been sleeping with the girl for about a year now.


Lesson
I agree that there are bad tenants but that still does not give landlords the right to treat good tenants like they are scum of the earth. By now tenants should learn Landlord-Tennant laws and regulations to prevent any future uncertainties with Landlords.


By Samuel Mantey, Property Express
Email: sammyoo3@yahoo.com/ pejournalist1@yahoo.co.uk
Twitter: SamuelMantey