Landlords Develop Group Rental Strategies to Boost Profits Amid Economic Struggles

By Elizabeth Adegbesan

Many landlords in Nigeria, especially in Lagos state, are changing the way they rent out apartments. Instead of leasing a whole flat to a single tenant, they now rent individual rooms in a three‑bedroom apartment to separate occupants who each sign their own lease with the landlord. This practice makes it harder for unemployed or low‑income individuals to share accommodation with friends or family, and it also limits families’ ability to rent a unit as a single household.

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Economy & Lifestyle reports that this shift is disrupting Nigeria’s housing market. Rising inflation, increasing construction costs, and a severe cost‑of‑living crisis are driving the adoption of a dual‑occupancy rental model that changes how young professionals and students find housing in cities and off‑campus apartments.

The practice, locally called “per‑person leasing” or “co‑tenancy,” involves two people sharing a standard two‑bedroom flat or a single room, but each pays a separate lease for their specific space.

Instead of pooling funds to pay a single rent, each occupant signs an independent agreement with the landlord and pays a fixed rate for their room.

Landlords factor inflation into every bedroom

Investigations show that under this fragmented leasing structure, property owners are maximizing revenue from a single asset to cope with macroeconomic pressures.

Chief Olanrewaju Gbadamosi, a property developer who manages multiple residents, said: “We are not being malicious; we are responding to a brutal economy.”

“The price of cement, finishing materials, and basic estate maintenance has surged by over 150 percent in recent years.”

“If I rent a two‑bedroom flat to a single family for N1.5 million, I lose out. If I lease it to two corporate working professionals at N1.4 million each, the property finally yields a sustainable return that covers diesel generator costs and property taxes.”

Gbadamosi argues that the strategy protects landlords from total loss if one tenant defaults or moves out, because the remaining tenant continues to pay their separate share.

Tenants face exploding accommodation bills

For young, middle‑class Nigerians with stagnant salaries and students dealing with high education costs, the per‑person pricing model is financially burdensome.

Praise Solomon, a student, said: “It is pure extortion disguised as innovation.”

“My sister and I found a decent one‑bedroom apartment advertised for N500,000 per annum. When we approached the caretaker, he told us the landlord’s new policy requires N400,000 from each of us individually. That is N800,000 total for the exact same space. Our combined feeding expenses can barely support it. We had to tell the man we were siblings and added N50,000 to the N500,000.”

Joan Aleakhue, an intern nurse, noted that the arrangement erodes the traditional sense of a Nigerian home. “Because our leases are legally separate, my flatmate and I are treated as isolated commercial entities. The caretaker explicitly warned us that if my friend packs out, the landlord retains the absolute right to lease that bedroom to a total stranger without my input or permission.”

Ambrose Azeez, a housing rights advocate, warned that “the commodification of floor space” is accelerating real estate inflation. “By turning a standard apartment into multiple standalone income points, landlords are artificially driving up prices. It forces families into cramped spaces and creates a hostile environment for young citizens trying to build their careers.”

As urban density rises across Nigeria’s major cities, the ongoing tension between desperate tenants and inflation‑weary landlords continues to reshape the legal and social definition of modern Nigerian tenancy.

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