By Deborah Naa Aku Allotey
Tema, Nov. 22, GNA — Some residents of Tema have expressed worry over the high rate of rent charged in the harbour cum industry city, which they say is taking a toll on their finances.
The residents told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that due to the high cost of renting houses, those who cannot afford it end up residing in slums in the communities.
They noted that even though monthly rent charges are high, landlords demand a minimum of two years advance, which most young people, including National Service persons posted into the area, could not afford.
Mr. Akebor Destiny Ohagbon, a Nigerian who moved to Ghana and resides in Tema, said he came to Ghana to make a living, but the cost of rent was too high and not everyone could afford to rent in the metropolis.
According to him, the consequence of high rents was a lot of homeless people roaming in the cosmopolitan city.
He mentioned that to get a decent-sized single room with no inbuilt toilet and bath, a one-month rent charge between GHs 500 and 1000 was being demanded by house owners.
Mr. Raphael Sackeyfio, a resident at Tema Community 1, lamented that the rent has become expensive recently in the area compared to neighbouring areas.
He said due to the numerous industries in Tema, a lot of workers had to rent in the area, leading to high demand, which, according to him, landlords were exploiting by increasing their rents.
“Because of the population in Tema, the demand for rent is high, which causes the high price of rent. As the saying goes, the higher the demand, the higher the price,” he added.
He appealed to house owners to price their rooms, based on the facilities available and state of the building, explaining that maintaining an old building was more expensive than maintaining a good one when rented.
Mr. Sackeyfio said the rent in Tema must be similar to that of neighbouring towns and communities to make life easy for workers in Tema.
He suggested that the Rent Control Department should come up with a standard rent range in Ghana, explaining that this would make it easy for both the poor and rich to get a place to put their heads.
Mr. Sena Dei, a landlord, debunked the assertion that rent was too high in Tema, as according to him, the charge was fair.
He said a single room in his building, which was built some years ago, was being rented out at a cost of GHs500, explaining that facilities like tiled floors, electricity meters, and a washroom also inform the rent cost.
He mentioned that prospective tenants who complain about the rent cost always get the understanding when they give the factors contributing to the cost.
He stated, for instance, that one major factor that determined the rent was the community it is located in.
GNA