Across different neighborhoods of Kigali, many tenants are expressing frustration over landlords who frequently raise rent without making any improvements to the properties. They say prices go up even without renovations sometimes not even a fresh coat of paint leaving tenants to bear higher costs without receiving any added value.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Residents who spoke to Africa Diplomacy<\/em> called on the government to intervene and establish stronger laws to protect tenants. They argue that property owners are exploiting Kigali\u2019s high demand for housing, arbitrarily hiking prices and evicting those who cannot afford the new rates, knowing replacements can be found quickly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Tenant Ihanabayo Loti said some landlords take advantage of the city\u2019s growing population. Munyentwali acknowledged that property values naturally rise due to market forces, inflation, and currency fluctuations, meaning rent increases are sometimes unavoidable. However, he stressed that such adjustments should be fair, transparent, and consistent with contractual terms not arbitrary hikes that exploit tenants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n He concluded by noting that agreements should specify not only when<\/em> rent may be increased, but also by how much<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Author: Justinmind HARERIMANA<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Across different neighborhoods of Kigali, many tenants are expressing frustration over landlords who frequently raise rent without making any improvements to the properties. They say prices go up even without renovations sometimes not even a fresh coat of paint leaving tenants to bear higher costs without receiving any added value. Residents who spoke to Africa […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":992,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-991","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-amakuru"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t
\u201cSometimes you move into a house, and within one or two months the rent has already gone up, even though nothing has been repaired or improved. The landlord hasn\u2019t painted or renovated, yet the price keeps increasing. I believe the government should address this.\u201d Similarly, Uzabarera Jeanne Gentille noted that landlords often justify rent increases by citing market changes, while tenants\u2019 salaries remain stagnant. She urged the government to regulate the practice and consider reducing taxes on landlords to prevent them from shifting costs onto tenants.
\u201cI am also a tenant and I\u2019ve faced the same problem. Salaries don\u2019t increase, but rent keeps going up. The government should step in to ensure landlords don\u2019t make life harder for tenants, and perhaps reduce their taxes so they stop pushing the burden onto us.\u201d Speaking to Africa Diplomacy<\/em>, legal expert Munyentwali Maurice explained that the core issue is the lack of clear rental agreements. Even when contracts exist, he said, they often omit crucial clauses\u2014such as how and when rent can be increased.
\u201cThe relationship between a landlord and a tenant is purely contractual. Article 64 of the law on contracts states that an agreement between two parties is binding, just like a law. This means whatever a landlord and a tenant agree upon must be respected by both sides.\u201d He emphasized that rental contracts should clearly define the rent amount, the minimum period before any increase, and the conditions for contract termination.
\u201cFor example, if the contract specifies that rent will remain the same for one, two, or even five years, then the landlord cannot raise it before that period ends. The contract must also cover what happens if either party wishes to terminate it, to prevent sudden and unfair evictions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n