How to Write a Rent Increase Letter in Nigeria: Free Template

A rent increase is an offer your tenant can refuse. Send it early and show your numbers.

No law in Lagos tells you how much notice to give before you raise the rent. The Lagos State Tenancy Law 2011 sets notice periods for ending a tenancy, not for changing the rent. It doesn't cap increases either.

What the Law does give your tenant is a way to challenge you. Your tenant can ask the court to declare an increase unreasonable and set the rent itself. While that case is open, you can't evict them.

So the timing, the reasons and the proof all sit in your letter. The free template is further down.

Key takeaways

No law caps a rent increase, but a court can cut one it finds unreasonable.
An increase is an offer. Your tenant can accept it, negotiate or leave.
During a term, you can only raise the rent with a rent review clause or your tenant's agreement.
For a yearly tenant, send the letter at least seven months before renewal. That leaves six months for a notice to quit if they say no.
A court tests an increase against rents for similar homes nearby, so put those rents in your letter.
In most of Lagos, you can't ask a yearly tenant for more than a year's rent upfront, even at the new rate.

What a rent increase letter is

A rent increase letter tells your tenant what the rent will be for the next term and when it starts. It asks them to accept or decline by a set date.

In law, it's an offer. In Udih v Izedonmwen (1990), the court held that a landlord's increase is an offer the tenant can accept or reject. If they reject it, the landlord either keeps the old rent or ends the tenancy the lawful way. Jovinco Nigeria Ltd v Ibeozimako (2014) followed the same line.

So the letter isn't a notice to quit. A notice to quit ends a tenancy. The letter proposes terms for the next one. Keep the two documents separate, and serve a notice to quit only if your tenant declines.

When you can raise the rent

At renewal. When the current term ends, you can offer a new rent for the next one. This is when most increases happen. Your letter should land months before it.

During the term, only with a rent review clause. If your tenancy agreement doesn't say the rent can be reviewed during the term, you can't raise it until the term ends unless your tenant agrees. A good clause says how often rent is reviewed, how the new rent is worked out, how notice is given and how disputes are settled.

If your agreement has no review clause, add one at the next renewal. Our guide to late rent fees shows how to write clauses into your tenancy agreement.

How much notice to give

No law sets a notice period for a rent increase. The Law's notice periods are for notices to quit, and they decide your timing anyway. If your tenant declines, you need time to end the tenancy before the new term would start.

Section 13 sets these periods when your agreement says nothing about notice. If your agreement sets its own, that applies instead.

How often rent is paid	Notice to quit (s.13)	Send the increase letter
Yearly	6 months	At least 7 months before renewal
Every six months	3 months	At least 4 months before renewal
Quarterly	3 months	At least 4 months before renewal
Monthly	1 month	At least 2 months before renewal
For a fixed term	None once the term ends	At least 3 months before the end date

The extra month is for your tenant's answer. Give them 30 days to reply. If they decline, you still have the full notice period to serve a notice to quit that ends on the renewal date.

Missed the date? Send it anyway. A notice to quit can end after the renewal date (s.13(4)), so you lose a few months at the old rent, not a year.

If your agreement has an end date, it's a fixed term, even if rent is paid yearly. Not sure which you have? Use the yearly row. Its timing covers both.

A fixed term needs no notice to quit once it ends. If the tenant stays on, you serve seven days' written notice of your intention to recover possession (s.13(5)). The three months in the table is our suggestion, not a legal rule. It gives your tenant time to accept or find another home.

Ikoyi, Victoria Island, Apapa and Ikeja GRA are exempt. The Tenancy Law doesn't apply in these four areas (s.1(3)), so section 37, the limit on rent upfront and the notice periods above don't either. The rule that an increase is an offer still does. Ask a lawyer before you serve notice on a property there.

Outside Lagos, each state has its own recovery of premises law with its own notice periods. Check yours before you send the letter.

The new tenancy bill isn't law yet. The Lagos State Tenancy and Recovery of Premises Bill, which officials say will regulate rent hikes, is still at committee stage in the House of Assembly. Until it passes, the 2011 Law applies.

How to set an increase that holds up

Section 37 lets your tenant apply to the court for an order that an increase is unreasonable. The court weighs three things:

The general level of rents in the area, or in a similar area.
Evidence from witnesses on both sides.
Any special circumstances of the property, or anything else relevant.

If it agrees with your tenant, it can set the rent at a specific amount. You can't evict the tenant while the case is open (s.37(4)).

So set the new rent the way a court would test it:

Check rents for similar homes nearby. Look at listings for the same size and type of home on your street or in your estate. Ask agents what similar units let for this year.
Note what changed at the property. A new borehole or a new security service can count as a special circumstance. Costs you can show count too.
Put the numbers in the letter. A tenant who sees how you arrived at the rent is less likely to dispute it. If they do, your evidence is already on paper.

If your agreement already says how rent is reviewed, follow it. Section 37 applies "subject to any agreement to the contrary".

What to include in the letter

The date, your name and your tenant's name.
The property address, including the flat or unit number.
The current term and the current rent.
The new rent, the date it starts, and the increase in naira and as a percentage.
How you set the new rent: rents nearby, or what changed at the property.
A line saying all other terms stay the same, or what else changes.
A deadline to reply, at least 30 days after the letter.
When the new rent is due.
What to do if they don't want to renew.
Your phone number and signature. If you manage for an owner, name them too.

Don't ask for more upfront than the Law allows. The Law makes it unlawful to demand more than a year's rent from a yearly tenant, or more than six months' from a monthly tenant (s.4). Anyone who receives or pays more commits an offence, with a ₦100,000 fine or three months in prison.

Rent increase letter template

Copy the letter below and replace everything in brackets.

[Your name or company name]
[Your address]
[Phone number] · [Email address]

[Date]

[Tenant's full name]
[Property address, including flat or unit number]

Dear [Tenant's name],

Rent for [property address] from [renewal date]

Thank you for your tenancy at [property address]. Your current term runs from [start date] to [end date] at a rent of ₦[current rent] a year.

If you renew from [renewal date], the rent will be ₦[new rent] a year. That is an increase of ₦[difference], or [percentage]%.

[How you set the new rent. For example: "Similar flats with two bedrooms in [area] now let for between ₦[amount] and ₦[amount] a year." Or: "This year we installed a new borehole."]

All other terms of your tenancy stay the same.

Please let me know whether you will renew at the new rent. Reply in writing by [reply date], by email to [email address] or WhatsApp to [phone number].

The rent for [renewal date] to [new end date] is due on [due date].

If you would prefer not to renew, please tell me by the same date so we can plan the handover.

If you have any questions, call me on [phone number].

Yours sincerely,

[Signature]
[Your name]
[Landlord, or (company name) for and on behalf of (owner's name)]

How to deliver it

No rule says how a rent increase letter must be delivered. The Law does say how notices to quit must be served, and following it gives you proof a court accepts. Proper service is service that shows the tenant knew about the notice (s.17). For a home, the Law lists these ways (s.18):

Hand it to your tenant in person.
Give it to an adult who lives at the property.
Send it by courier, with proof of delivery, if your tenant can't be found.
Fix it somewhere prominent on the property, with proof that you did.

Deliver it one of these ways and keep the proof. Email and WhatsApp work well for an extra copy. If you later need to serve a notice to quit, use one of the ways above.

If the tenant says no

If you hear nothing by the reply date, treat it as a no. If they say they'll leave, serve the notice to quit anyway, so the date is fixed.

You have three options:

Negotiate. Meet in the middle, or raise the rent over two renewals instead of one. If you can't agree, the Citizens Mediation Centre and the Lagos Multi-Door Court House both mediate tenancy disputes.
Keep the current rent for another term.
End the tenancy the lawful way. For a yearly tenant, serve a notice to quit with six months' notice, unless your agreement says otherwise. If they don't leave when it ends, serve seven days' notice of your intention to recover possession (s.16), then apply to the court. For a fixed term, the seven days' notice can follow straight after the term ends (s.13(5)).

Don't lock your tenant out, remove their things or threaten them. Forcing a tenant out, or trying to, is an offence under section 44. The penalty is a fine of up to ₦250,000 or up to six months in prison. If your tenant has applied to the court under section 37, you can't evict them until the case is decided.

Collect the new rent with Roofteller

When your tenant accepts, the new rent needs to be billed, paid and recorded against the right property. The Law also says you must give a receipt for every rent payment, with a ₦100,000 fine if you don't (s.5).

Roofteller's Rent Collection sends your tenant each invoice, and they pay from the tenant portal. Every bill, its due date and its receipt are in one place. Rent, deposits and fees each go to their own account, so your tenant's deposit never sits with the rent.

Final thoughts

Send the letter early, with your numbers in it, and get the answer in writing.

A tenant who sees the numbers and has time to plan is more likely to stay. If they don't, you still have time to end the tenancy properly.

FAQ

How many months' notice do you give for a rent increase in Lagos?

No law sets a period. For a yearly tenant, give at least seven months before renewal. That leaves six months to serve a notice to quit if your tenant declines.

When can a landlord increase rent in Lagos?

At the end of the current term, or during the term if your tenancy agreement has a rent review clause. Without one, an increase during the term needs your tenant's agreement.

How much can a landlord increase rent in Lagos?

The Law sets no cap. Your tenant can ask the court to declare an increase unreasonable, and the court compares it with rents for similar homes in the area.

Can I ask for two years' rent at the new rate?

Not in most of Lagos. You can't demand more than a year's rent from a yearly tenant, or from a new one (s.4). Anyone who receives or pays more commits an offence, with a ₦100,000 fine or three months in prison. The limit doesn't apply in Ikoyi, Victoria Island, Apapa or Ikeja GRA, where the Tenancy Law doesn't apply.

Does this apply in Ikoyi or Victoria Island?

The Tenancy Law doesn't apply in Ikoyi, Victoria Island, Apapa or Ikeja GRA. The rule that an increase is an offer still does. Speak to a lawyer before you serve notice there.

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