[Source: The Standard, by Wainaina Wambu]
Landlords now want full access to information on where tenants work among other supporting documents to prove loss of income if they are to allow them to continue staying in their premises.
This is aimed at weeding out tenants who use the Covid-19 pandemic as an excuse to delay rent payments – especially for residential houses – yet have steady paychecks.
Ephraim Murigo, the Urban Tenants Association of Kenya secretary general, said they have formed a team to investigate tenants’ claims of loss of income.
The lobby has also advised the government to set up a committee in counties to counter-check those who have registered their inability to pay rent.
The demands follow a recent report by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) showing that 30 per cent of Kenyan households were unable to pay their April rent on time while less than 10 per cent of landlords were yet to offer rent relief.
KNBS attributed the failure to pay April rent to reduced income or earnings, temporary loss of job, and delay in income.
Up to a million Kenyans have lost their jobs between January and March, with the unemployment rate standing at 13.7 per cent as of March this year, from a rate of 12.4 per cent in December 2019 according to KNBS data.
Mr Murigo, who was speaking at a virtual forum on KTN News on Tuesday night said tenants employed by the government were getting their salaries and had no reason to delay rent.
He promised to bear with those in the hospitality industry – where thousands of jobs have been lost.
The lobby boss noted that tenants should now be able to demonstrate in writing why they can’t pay rent and asked landlords to also determine payment ability from track records pre-Covid 19 and be judged with rent distress history.
Sakina Hassanali, HassConsult head of development consulting, said landlords were still lenient through rent reliefs and deferring payments.
Some landlords, especially in low-income areas, have resorted to crude methods including removing doors and roofs in attempts to recover rent arrears.
[Full article: The Standard, by Wainaina Wambu]
