New Lagos tenancy bill: what tenants, landlords and agents stand to gain or lose

Lagos State has proposed a new tenancy bill that seeks to regulate excessive rent increases, questionable agency charges, fraudulent agents and landlord-tenant disputes. The bill is currently before the Lagos State House of Assembly and could reshape rental transactions across the state if passed into law.

Tenants may get more protection

The biggest benefit for tenants is stronger protection from arbitrary rent hikes and excessive charges. Lagos lawmakers have previously raised concerns about rent increases of as much as 100 to 200 per cent in some areas, with calls for stricter enforcement of existing tenancy protections.

The proposed reforms are expected to tighten rules around rent payments, tenancy agreements and eviction, while making rental transactions more transparent. The government also wants tenancy disputes resolved faster, including through weekend and public holiday sittings for tenancy-related matters. For ordinary Lagos tenants, that could reduce opportunities for landlords or agents to exploit gaps in the system.

Landlords face tighter limits

The picture is more complicated for landlords. Responsible property owners could gain from clearer rules and quicker dispute resolution, but restrictions on rent increases and greater scrutiny of tenancy arrangements may reduce their flexibility.

Landlords also face rising construction, maintenance and financing costs. If regulations limit how quickly rents can be adjusted, some property owners may look for other ways to protect their returns. That creates a central question: could measures meant to make renting more affordable encourage some landlords to raise asking rents or become more selective about tenants? The answer may depend on how the final law is written and enforced.

Agents must register with LASRERA

Estate agents are another major target. The bill would make registration with the Lagos State Real Estate Regulatory Authority, LASRERA, mandatory. Operating without registration could become an offence.

That could hurt unregistered operators who have built businesses around excessive charges, questionable transactions or weak accountability. For legitimate agents, tighter regulation could be an opportunity. Removing fraudulent operators from the market could improve confidence in professional estate businesses. The state says LASRERA recovered more than N270 million from fraudulent estate agents between 2025 and 2026, showing the scale of the problem regulators are tackling.

Reforms cannot fix housing shortage

Ultimately, Lagos cannot regulate its way out of a housing shortage, according to a report by TheCable. Even if the new rules reduce excessive charges and strengthen tenant protections, rents will remain under pressure if demand continues to outpace the supply of affordable homes.

High land prices, construction costs and financing challenges continue to make affordable housing difficult to deliver at scale. That means the proposed tenancy bill could be an important step towards a more transparent rental market, but it will not solve Lagos' housing crisis on its own.

For the naira and Nigerian businesses, the bill is unlikely to move exchange rates or inflation directly. But for Lagos households, the real test will be whether the reforms can protect tenants without discouraging landlords and developers from providing the homes the city desperately needs.