nony30: @edenitis what makes ‎u think trutalk and myself are •̸№t house owners?we don't have τ̲̅ȍ parade our achievements.Some of ‎u small boys who managed τ̲̅ȍ pick up some lucky cash from a lucky deal now want τ̲̅ȍ become millionaires tru collection of rent. •̸№, Į̸̸̨ƭ doesn't work like that.Building a house is like choosing τ̲̅ȍ tie up ur money in an investment that will grow overtime instesd of living Į̸̸̨ƭ in a bank where Į̸̸̨ƭ depriciates.Or haven't ‎u heard of rich men who just put tenants in their houses τ̲̅ȍ avoid decay?@ bigheart,pls act d name and think like a human •̸№t a beast!

truly some people reason through there buttocks Oga ask God for a little brain you surely need it.

y2kaustin: Please someone help with answer,will Nigeria ever be good again?.i want to change my Nationality

.
I can help you to change your nationality to any of these, SYRIA,SOMALIA,PAKISTAN,IRAN,CONGO,CENTRAL AFRICA REPUBLIC,IRAQ,MALI and AFGANISTAN. Choose from these options. Mtchewww.

Edenitis: Big heart. You have my sympathy because I am a landlord and I have suffered in the hands of tenants who think like 2ru-talk and nony30.
Another one who thinks like them is the Lagos State Governor who has just passed a law to encourage such thinkers.

They think the landlord picked or stole THEIR money to build the house on THEIR OWN land. So he must make it available to them for them to use as they please.

The law in Lagos states that you are to suffer a tenant to owe you for as much as one year before you can seek to evict him.
Now do not let me drag you into these controversies. Let me answer your query.

While the rent subsists, if he were a yearly tenant, that is to say if his last rent were for one year, you should give him a minimum of 6 months notice which should terminate on the date of the expiration of the existing tenancy. If you now have less than six months to the expiry of his rent you need to be careful. If he is a reasonable person, you could discuss your need for the house with him and have an agreement when he will leave. in such circumstances, it is not uncommon for a landlord to give the tenant 3 months extension notice without pay as an incentive for him to leave as agreed. Such an agreement should be written and signed and registered in court in case the tenant changes his mind.
Where the tenant is not a reasonable person, wait for the expiry of the tenancy and then accept shorter rent as stated by Kamalahmed. Midway into the term, give notice to expire with the time paid for. Notice is NOT WITHOUT PAY.

The only problem is that they may not leave when the notice expires and that is when the trouble begins.

You are to give them 7 days notice thereafter and then you proceed to court.

In Lagos, the court procedure is laborious and fraught with excessive and frustrating delays.
Elsewhere it is better.
I operate in Lagos and Abuja.
I have decided to stop being a Landlord in Lagos because of the unfriendly processes to Landlords in Lagos. It is easier in Abuja.

No matter how wicked or unreasonable the tenants may be, keep your cool and wait. What is yours is yours.

(Although there is an on going case of a serving Governor trying to steal a house from the owner with the connivance of some judiciary officers. In the end, the house will still revert to the owner)

A tenant of mine walked away with more than three years rent unpaid!

I still have my house and he has God and his conscience to contend with. My lawyers are not helping and Lagos state system does not defend the Landlords.

God help us all.

I just want to contribute to this thread. It may be easy for the tenant to manipulate the lapses in our judicial system to his advantage in Lagos State, it is not applicable in Port-Harcourt, where the Landlords promulgate his own law and method of tenant's eviction. The tenancy law compels landlord to give a yearly tenant, 6-month written notice to be served on the tenant exactly on the 6th month prior to the expiration of his current yearly rent. If you as a landlord should miss the chance to do so, you have lost the opportunity to serve your tenant eviction notice. What landlords of a particular ethnicity in Port-Harcourt do is to forcefully eject tenant without regard to the law existing between landlord and tenant.
If your situation falls within the ambient of the law as stipulated above, just proceed to serve your tenant quit notice, if you genuinely wish to re-possess your property.

bigheart2013: I want to give an eviction notice to my tenant who is renting a bungalow from me this month. I want to recover the house for personal use in a few months. I envisage he might resist the move. It’s a residential house currently occupied by a family of 6. I did mention it to him verbally last year.

Does anyone know what the Nigerian Tenancy law says about eviction notices –

1. How many months notice am I required to give a tenant?
2. Is he required to pay me rents during the period?
3. Can I simply evict him at the end of this year’s agreement (February)
4. What actions he might take if he feels aggrieved (petition right groups/ govt, court injunctions, etc)?
5. What loopholes do tenants usually explore in the law that I need to watch out for?

I will appreciate we focus on the issues on the thread. I do not want to break the law or get locked in a lengthy court battle especially.

y didn't u tell me dis b4 I rented ur houz, I'm here on nairaland, I must sue u 2 court by monday, let me gt home first, cus knw juz try am o, na 2 fight u go sure pass

...

We need a legal section on nl.

Big Heart, Listen to the advise being proffered to you by the good Nairalanders, forceful ejection is provocative to God. In-as-much as you are being tutored on what the law states as it relates to tenant/ landlord, you can still be frustrated by the same law that is covering you. Carry out a self examination if with sincerity, you really want to possess the property for personal occupation, or you want to give it out to highest bidder.

Sorry to say but d posters wt the monickers truetalk and nony30 are highly unreasonable, my bad bt I just had to say it... I knw life has bn mean to u, bt u don't need to carry it like a big signpost on ur foreheads.... For instance, where in d post did u read dt d property is in Lagos and how d hell did u come to d conclusion dt he is offering to d highest bidder b4 spewing all doz curses on d op..smh

If I be ur tenant I go frustrate ur life . I go stay 4 ur house 6month after the notice from there we will go to court the case will be adjourned stay again for a year before moving out.

@OP, 6 months eviction notice to be served at the expiration of his current tenancy (Fedruary). The notice must be registered in court b4 serving it.

And yes, the tenant must have to pay for the duration he stays after the notice has been served. Some might not want to pay, but a good lawyer will recover your money for you by involving the tenants work place (better for you if he/she works with the govt or a well established parastatal).

Coincidentally, I'm serving my tenant with a quit notice soon. He feels maybe that I'm too young to be his landlord and has been dodging rent since his rent expired last year december. My barrister advised me on the proceedings. But my greatest concern was the 5 months he has lived already without payment. I strategically leaked the info of my intention to quit him to his very good friend, who informed him and last week, he paid for half a year. Now, this makes things easier for me as he has now made himself a 6-months tenant instead of a yearly tenant. My barrister has redrafted the quit notice, editing it to 3 months instead of 6 months.

I know most tenants cry foul and landlords are seen as wicked and heartless, but some of us had to work through thick and thin to build a house, strictly for business. I work in another city and pay my rents to someone else, so why shouldn't the occupant of my house pay rent?

Just follow due process and he is bound to leave.

locust01: If I be ur tenant I go frustrate ur life . I go stay 4 ur house 6month after the notice from there we will go to court the case will be adjourned stay again for a year before moving out.

You don't know anything about landlord/tenancy agreement. As long as the quit notice was served within the confines of the law, you will be evicted and the magistrate will instruct that you pay all the accumulated rent within the period.
Now you spend money on a lawyer that represented you in court all through the adjournment, then you still end up getting evicted and made to pay the rent. Who is loosing out?

@post, in law the agreement of parties bind them, the law only steps in where there is a lapse created by the agreement..dt said, since obviously der's no agreement as to how long d notice to quit should be in ds scenario,wat u shld knw is that for a yearly tenant wat is required is 6mnths notice, I'm assuming urs is a yrly tenancy. If it is d tenancy should expire on d eve of it's commencement, ur notice to quit should be served on d tenant at least 6mnths b4 its expiration, else d tenant will be entitled to a period of six mnths frm d date of reciept of notice... At d end of d six mnths, ur lawyer will serve dem wt '3days Owner's intention to recover posession' if dey fail to vacate, u proceed to court to institute an action against dem, any oda mns will be regarded as unlawful and u will be d offender.

y2kaustin: Please someone help with answer,will Nigeria ever be good again?.i want to change my Nationality

.Not only you,Someone should help me with QATAR WORKING VISA.

honestly after reading this thread, I have concluded that some people are not just meant to be part of the society. Building a house for rent is an investment, not charity work. He is investing to make a profit not a loss.So yes, if he want to give the rent the house to someone else for a higher price, its his business! yes, I may sound insensitive but the landlord too has to eat . From my experience some tenants are just bent on making the landlord life a living hell, while some others are a blessing. From the tenants point of view, in some states, they'll have to pay 2 years rent, which is their only disadvantage.
landlord do what u must

no one could even help the young with the tenancy law every body was just saying rubbish, I was patiently waiting if some one could help with the law, I need it too just want to know what the law say about landlord and tenant, pls let try to discuss sensible thing when ever a topic or an is raised that will make us ( Nigeria ) to respect each other. Remember the nigeria we all are fighting for start within you and me. Pls let change this attitude of insulting each other. Thank you all

Jan koller.:

Human right activist, try and go through d post 1ce more and u'll realise u are not on point.

Thank you for being reasonable.But the issue here is that most often times some house owners will always give reasons such as this here τ̲̅ȍ recover their properties in disguise that they want τ̲̅ȍ use Į̸̸̨ƭ just τ̲̅ȍ obtain the sypathy of a reasonable tenant only for them τ̲̅ȍ double the rent and give Į̸̸̨ƭ out τ̲̅ȍ another desperate tenant willing τ̲̅ȍ pay.People like this are exactly why Fashola had τ̲̅ȍ look into this kind of cases which occur once too often for mere coincidences.
So I guess my pain was bourne out of my feelings for the unfortunate tenant about τ̲̅ȍ be put under pressure τ̲̅ȍ relocate. Same thing happened τ̲̅ȍ my friend only for another τ̲̅ȍ pay a 50% increase τ̲̅ȍ take the place.And when approached the Landlord said that was the easiest legal way τ̲̅ȍ get his house back.Τ̲̅ȍ lie!!

Mimicole: @post, in law the agreement of parties bind them, the law only steps in where there is a lapse created by the agreement..dt said, since obviously der's no agreement as to how long d notice to quit should be in ds scenario,wat u shld knw is that for a yearly tenant wat is required is 6mnths notice, I'm assuming urs is a yrly tenancy. If it is d tenancy should expire on d eve of it's commencement, ur notice to quit should be served on d tenant at least 6mnths b4 its expiration, else d tenant will be entitled to a period of six mnths frm d date of reciept of notice... At d end of d six mnths, ur lawyer will serve dem wt '3days Owner's intention to recover posession' if dey fail to vacate, u proceed to court to institute an action against dem, any oda mns will be regarded as unlawful and u will be d offender.

I tink it wud be helpful if d court awards damages in monetary term to d landlord whenever a tenant fails to vacate and d landlord is forced to institute a court action against d tenant. I tink dat wud be fair given that d tenant wud make d landlord spend moni in getting a lawyer, incidental costs in pursuing d case, stress d landlord passes tru in pursuing d case thereby denying d landlord peace of mind, etc. And I think dat will also help nip in d bud dis disgusting attitude of tenants deliberately not wanting to leave because dey know how frustrating d whole court process wud be. If a tenant knows he/she will pay for his/her own lawyer, pass tru stress and still end up vacating, plus paying all accumulated house rent as well as damages in monetary terms to d landlord, he/she wud rather vacate as at wen due. *just my thoughts*

devour129: truly some people reason through there buttocks Oga ask God for a little brain you surely need it.

For showing respect by referring τ̲̅ȍ me as Oga alone has doused the anger and I forgive ur misconception but I hope u experience such.

yertyr:
landlord? U're kidding right? Guy you write like my sister's 10yr old. What are those funny shapes in ur comment?
@op, I'm not adept to these tenancy laws. All I do is create an agreement on paper(tenancy agreement) stating my 'conditions' for anyone who plans on being my tenant. If u like, u sign it... If u no want, u leave. For me it's 3months after notice(without pay save nepa bill).Even if u dey pay 10yrs rent, u must go.

Who is dis bufoonic personality with notin τ̲̅ȍ contribute

Unna don forget MASSOB?? You need them as PRO, u know they talk a lot wit no action....lol

Jan koller.:

And 3 niger-delta militants 4 implimentation

Are you too lame to understand what the court is trying to do, that no matter what no one deserved to sleep under the bridge.

Oko_AGB:


I tink it wud be helpful if d court awards damages in monetary term to d landlord whenever a tenant fails to vacate and d landlord is forced to institute a court action against d tenant. I tink dat wud be fair given that d tenant wud make d landlord spend moni in getting a lawyer, incidental costs in pursuing d case, stress d landlord passes tru in pursuing d case thereby denying d landlord peace of mind, etc. And I think dat will also help nip in d bud dis disgusting attitude of tenants deliberately not wanting to leave because dey know how frustrating d whole court process wud be. If a tenant knows he/she will pay for his/her own lawyer, pass tru stress and still end up vacating, plus paying all accumulated house rent as well as damages in monetary terms to d landlord, he/she wud rather vacate as at wen due. *just my thoughts*

You are a very wicked person....Please for your information if their is any tenant that is been disturb by his or her landlady, the person should not worry, as long as that house is here in Lagos, i know what where need to go and and before u know it the house will collapse and Lagos state government will take possession of the property and the owner of the property will be on the run..... u dont even need to drag with the landlord.... The house will collapse after one week you have packed out from the compound..... Wahala dey...

shinealight:

Are you sure the Law says without pay? That is the first time I'm hearing such a thing! Is the landlord a philantropist or is he doing charity with the property? For all you know, he could have borrowed money to build or purchase the house and has to pay the mortgage every month as per the Agreement with the Mortgage Lender. If he defaults on the mortgage repayment, his house can be repossessed and he will be the one looking for someone to house him on a charitable basis!

If this truly exists in Nigerian Law, then I consider it unjustifiable sentiment. True, the landlord has to give the tenant appropriate 'notice to quit' but he gives it 6 months or so before the expiration of the period of tenancy which the tenant must have already paid for or is expected to pay for before he can remove his belongings from the property. The notice is to give the tenant adequate time to seek alternative accommodation not to live off the landlord without payment!

witout pay..am very sure of dat.

vandarsar: Are you too lame to understand what the court is trying to do, that no matter what no one deserved to sleep under the bridge.

Seems ur mind works to slow to understand mildly complicated issues.

LOL....Nigerians and their funny ways.
So you mean you actually rented out an apartment without any form of Landlord-Tenancy Agreement documentation?
Wonders shall never end! I no blame you sha, na the person wey rent apartment lack sense.

I'm sure you didn't use estate agents as well....na hand-to-hand transaction things .

I no know which kind advice i go give you, sorry

What determines the law that applies in a given Landlord/Tenancy relationship is the locality of the building and the term of years granted.
In Lagos and Abuja, a yearly tenant must as a matter of law be given a quit notice of 6 months (subject however to the express agreement between both parties). In Abuja, the 6 months notice must be so calculated to end @ the eve or anniversary of the tenancy, any failure to do this, means the Landlord has to wait for another year. (Note however, that the tenant would still be liable to pay mesne profit, that is a form of rent but not rent in the real sense of the word. In Lagos, the 6 months can be calculated in such a way as to end after the expiration of the tenancy, though its advisable it ends with the tenancy.
For a valid notice to be deemed served in the eyes of the law, if u are serving it through a Lawyer or agent, u have to give a written letter of authority mandating the Lawyer or agent to so act. However, if u are serving it yourself (which is unadvisable because of the delicate legal nature of it), it dispenses with the need for letter of authority. After this, your Lawyer, drafts a notice to quit and serves it personally on the said tenant, where this expires, you draft and serve a 7days notice of owners intention to recover premises. If after this, the tenant still holds back, you go to court to grant an order empowering u to evict him from the building and an order mandating the tenant to pay arrears owed, this should'nt take time depending on the lawyer and the court where the application is made.
'But my Naija brothers too like free things sha'.Lol. We need to start inculcating the habit of consulting a Lawyer when we have legal issues because the money you pay for professional fees is meager to the amount payed and loss suffered when things really get bad.

Oko_AGB:


Seems ur mind works to slow to understand mildly complicated issues.

na ur own joor..d guy is on point.in lagos state..,if d case enters court,d tenant will be given 6months(nt to be paid for).after d 6months,if he returns 2 court dat he is yet 2 get a new house,he wil be given another 3months(nt to be paid for).after dat,1month,then ejection.d tenant jst need 2 get a gud lawyer,and u loose 10months or more.N/B:dis is applicable only 2 gud tenants dat hav been paying their rent and obeyin d tenancy/landlord agreement.

fuckluv: Don't just go to any lawyer cos of this. In the court, they will only complicate things for u as the judge will keep on adjourning the case; meanwhile the tenant would be using free months rents after the suppossed 6 months notice u issued all these while. Reasons being that you will not be the only client for the lawyer as the tenant would also be 'bribing' him. But if you have a personal lawyer in conjunction with mopol officers at ur services, you will only issue a months notice to the tenanat. If by then he still refuses to leave, then his properties will be evacuated by the N.M.P and will be given as auction in the courts of law.

NOTE PLS!
I didn't give u this hint to be mean and callous to tenants. This can only be exercised on tenants who doesn't abide by your rules as it's stated in the Agreement. If this your said tenants are good fellows, why not exercise a little patience and wait for them to seek another desired apartments they could move in instead of rendering them homeless all of a sudden

What if the tenant in question is a naval officer, a senior legal counsel and a native doctor?

u have to go to tribunal n get a quick notice letter from them

if he normally pays one year rent, that means it's a six month notice u'll give him of which he must pay for that period but if u want to be nice with him u can allow him stay without payment.

Ones u have a tribunal paper to evict him legally, there is no problem. So go ahead.

av done it before so i know what am saying

I advice the OP to just increase the rent of the tenant. If he fails to pay the increased rent then wait for him to be on arears of rent. Once he is in arrears of rent he has defaulted section 15 of the Rent Tribunal law of Lagos state and this will entitle you to serve him a seven days notice to quit. But you can only do this if he is a yearly tenant and there was no tenancy agreement signed between you and him or the tenancy agreement was silent over the length of notice to quit to be given. I am a lawyer, trust me, it will work if u follow my advice.

Ah haaa!! You rentend the house out just a month ago and now you want the apartment back for personal use. Ha! Just a month ago ooo. Kai! E je ka beru Olorun oo.