PAYING BLIND: STUDENTS, HOSTELS AND THE LAW THEY DON’T KNOW 

Imagine preparing for a new academic year and going through the stress of finding a place to stay. You finally find a room but you’re told to pay up to two years’ rent in advance or risk losing it. What would you do?

Every academic year, thousands of students across Ghana search for accommodation near their campuses. For many, securing a room means paying large sums upfront sometimes for an entire semester, or even a year or two just to secure a bed space. But for most students, the process isn’t only about finding a place to stay. It’s about accepting conditions they don’t fully understand, including what the law actually allows and what it doesn’t.

AN EXPENSIVE COMPETITIVE NECESSITY

Around institutions such as UniMAC, the University of Ghana, and UPSA, hostel accommodation has become a fiercely competitive and costly necessity. Fees range from about GH¢2,500 to GH¢21,000 per semester, depending on location, room size, occupancy, and facilities. With limited spaces available, students often accept whatever terms they’re offered to secure a room quickly especially before a new academic year begins.

But behind that urgency lies a deeper issue many students overlook: the legal framework governing these agreements.

WHAT THE LAW ACTUALLY SAYS

Contrary to popular belief, Ghana’s rent laws do not control how much landlords or hostel managers can charge. Instead, they regulate the relationship between landlords and tenants and set boundaries around certain rental practices most notably, advance rent payments.

According to legal practitioner Tracy A. S. Frimpong Esq., landlords are restricted in how much rent they can demand upfront. The maximum advance a landlord can legally request is six months’ rent. Under the Rent Act, 1963 (Act 220), demanding more than this is an offence, and tenants who have overpaid are entitled to seek redress.

The law also protects tenants from arbitrary eviction. Frimpong notes that landlords can only evict tenants under specific conditions: non-payment of rent, breach of tenancy obligations, nuisance, illegal activity, or where the landlord genuinely needs the property for personal use.

THE GAP BETWEEN LAW AND PRACTICE

Despite these protections, many students enter tenancy agreements without knowing the law and some say they are still confronted with demands that exceed the legal limit. One student recounted being asked to pay up to two years’ rent in advance before being allocated a room; others said they were told to pay at least a year upfront. These practices persist daily, even though the Rent Act caps advance payments at six months.

“HOSTELS ARE COVERED TOO”

A common misconception, according to Mr Iddriss, an official at the Rent Control Department, is that students living in hostels fall outside the protection of rent laws. In fact, hostels meet the legal definition of “premises” under the Rent Act, 1963 (Act 220), the Rent Regulations of 1964, and the Rent Control Law of 1983 meaning students renting hostel rooms are legally recognised as tenants.

Once a complaint is filed, he said, students are treated like any other tenant under the law. But the bigger question is: do students actually file complaints when issues arise?

Iddriss also explained that landlords and hostel managers are legally required to provide a tenancy agreement within seven days of renting out a property, spelling out each party’s responsibilities and how the tenancy may be terminated. Whether this is consistently honoured in practice is another matter.

LOW AWARENESS, LOW REPORTING

The Rent Control Department says awareness remains low among tenants  students especially. Many fail to report violations simply because they don’t know where to go, or assume nothing will change. Inquiries at the department are free, though formal complaints require an affordable registration fee. Enforcement largely depends on complaints being filed; investigations typically begin only after a case is reported, though the department says it is considering more proactive inspections.

BEYOND THE BED SPACE

For many students, renting a hostel room is simply about securing a place to stay before the semester begins. But beneath that urgency lies a legal system most don’t fully understand. Ghana’s rent laws may not set the price of accommodation, but they do offer protections students are entitled to and often unaware of.

As demand for student housing continues to rise, the challenge is no longer just about finding a room. It’s about knowing the rights that come with renting one. Until awareness improves, many students will keep signing agreements without realising the protections the law already gives them.

 

BY DIANA LARYEA

Email: [email protected]