Enugu State will cap what agents and lawyers can charge a tenant, and will not cap rent. Governor Peter Ndubuisi Mbah said so directly this week, and the reason he gave is the most useful thing in the debate.
His administration is amending the Landlord and Tenant Law, Cap. 101, Revised Laws of Enugu State, 2004, and the governor has committed to signing it within four weeks of it reaching him.
What the bill does
According to the Speaker of the Enugu State House of Assembly, Uche Ugwu, the executive bill seeks to:
- establish clearer rules for tenancy transactions
- regulate estate agents
- limit agency and legal fees
- provide a structured framework for the handling and refund of caution fees
An earlier version of the bill proposed capping agency commissions and legal fees at a maximum of 10% of the rent, prohibiting caution fees, and adding safeguards against irregular and fraudulent evictions. The report of this week’s commitment does not restate that ceiling, so the exact cap in the version to be signed is not yet public.
Why he will not cap rent
This is the part worth reading twice. Asked why the state was not capping rent itself, the governor argued that doing so would reduce supply and push rents up:
“One thing that government can regulate effectively is controlling the cost an agent charges as commission, controlling the legal fees. You can clearly make laws to guide that.”
“It is extremely difficult to make laws to cap the fee or the rent a landlord charges because once you do that, what you’re going to see is scarcity.”
Instead, the state is pursuing supply: expanding the city, opening new residential areas, and building more units on the theory that supply is what brings rent down.
That is a coherent position, and it is the opposite of the instinct behind the FCT rent bill now before the House of Representatives.
The two approaches, side by side
| FCT bill (proposed) | Enugu amendment (proposed) | |
|---|---|---|
| What it restricts | Advance rent – no more than 12 months | Agency and legal fees; caution fees |
| Caps rent itself | No | No, explicitly rejected |
| Enforcement | Fines of ₦500,000–₦5m for individuals, ₦5–20m for companies | Not yet stated |
| Theory of change | Stop landlords taking two years upfront | Cut transaction costs; build more |
Neither caps rent. Both regulate what sits around the rent – which tells you what legislators believe is actually enforceable.
What this is worth to a tenant
In most Nigerian tenancy transactions a tenant pays agency commission, a legal or agreement fee, and a caution deposit on top of the rent. A common pattern is 10% agency, 10% legal and 10% caution – roughly 30% of the annual rent, paid before moving in.
Take a flat in Enugu at ₦800,000 a year, the top of the range reported this week.
| Item | At 10% each | If fees were capped at 10% total and caution fees removed |
|---|---|---|
| Agency | ₦80,000 | ₦80,000 |
| Legal / agreement | ₦80,000 | |
| Caution | ₦80,000 | |
| Cash before moving in | ₦1,040,000 | ₦880,000 |
The saving is ₦160,000 – a fifth of the rent, on the day the tenant can least afford it.
That arithmetic uses a common 10/10/10 structure as an illustration, not a surveyed figure for Enugu. The point holds at any rate: the fees are the difference between affording a flat and not.
What is still missing
Two things, and both matter more than the announcement.
The cap itself. “Limit” is not a number. Until the bill is published with a stated ceiling and a definition of what counts as a legal fee, a landlord or agent can restructure the charge rather than reduce it.
Enforcement. Lagos has had tenancy rules on the books for years and the market has worked around them. A cap that is not enforced becomes a negotiating position, and the tenant still needs the flat.
Frequently asked questions
Will Enugu cap rent?
No. The governor explicitly rejected rent control, arguing it would cause scarcity and increase rents. The state is targeting agency and legal fees instead, and pursuing supply.
When does it take effect?
The governor has committed to working with the House of Assembly for passage within four weeks and says he will sign immediately on transmission. It is not law yet.
What is the 10% figure?
10% was the proposed ceiling on agency and legal fees in an earlier version of the bill. This week’s report does not restate it, so the final figure is unconfirmed.
Does this affect tenants outside Enugu?
No. It amends Enugu State law. The FCT bill covers Abuja only; Lagos and other states have their own tenancy legislation.
Will caution fees be banned?
The bill provides a framework for handling and refunding caution fees. The earlier version proposed prohibiting them outright. Which of the two survives is not yet clear.
Last updated: 28 October 2026. The governor’s commitment, the four-week timeline, the Speaker’s description of the bill, and the two quotations are from BusinessDay’s report of 27 October 2026. The 10% ceiling and the caution-fee prohibition are attributed to an earlier version of the bill and are not confirmed for the version to be signed. The 10/10/10 fee structure and the resulting cash figures are an illustration, not a surveyed Enugu figure. Not legal advice.
