Why do Nigerians pay rent annually, not monthly?

Jan 07, 2022|Fadekemi Abiru

If you have been keeping up with us this year (and I hope you have), you will have noticed that each analyst in the newsroom has taken on a futuristic approach in their most recent stories. From going into the future of travel to powering up rural areas, and what the upcoming elections will mean for our economy, we’ve kept with our usual tradition of helping you—our readers—stay ahead of the curve.

Some takeaways:

The implication of the annual rent payment system (as it applies in Nigeria) is that prospective home renters, especially those with low to middle income, will have to save money for longer periods or resort to borrowing to afford a decent home.
But it is difficult for monthly rental payments to be successful in Nigeria due to several economic headwinds like lack of identity data and speedy value erosion of money.
However, the Lagos State Government is considering making monthly rental payments possible. One challenge, as with most government initiatives, is effective implementation.

Not to be contrarian, but I decided to go down a different route today and look into a question you could argue has been around for a long time: why do Nigerians pay rent annually?

This question should be top of mind for anyone looking to rent a home in Nigeria. You see, living in Nigeria is hard—whether it’s because you’re a business owner who has to fork over huge sums of money to pay for expensive diesel for your generator thanks to erratic power issues; or you are a young graduate facing the country’s worst unemployment crisis; or you are just the average citizen living in a country that has settled into a series of bad equilibrium, its hard. Our norm is to adopt a ‘manage it like that’ mentality, even when things are dire.

Then you add the fact