I’ve always been fascinated by Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, and the relationships between each level of the pyramid– how one must be completed before other.

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According to his theory, physiological needs are the most important requirement for human survival. ‘Shelter’ is one of these needs. So, I decided to ask young Nigerians about their struggles with rent. I put a call out, and these are some of the responses I got. 

Laila

My rent expired July last year in the middle of the pandemic. My landlord decided that he needed to increase the building’s rent from ₦300,000 to ₦550,000 to survive can survive. Unfortunately, I’d not worked in a while. I work as a virtual assistant, but because of Covid, people weren’t outsourcing work as much as they used to and it became struggle to earn up to the usual ₦100,000 to ₦300,000 I got monthly.

I tried to raise the money because the alternative was to move back to my aunt’s place. She is my guardian, but she is a pill. I moved out of her house as soon as I was able to. To make things worse, my sister got sick and we couldn’t figure out what was wrong. I was paying for tests after tests. 

I couldn’t get the money. Eventually, I had to do the one thing I didn’t want to do: move back to my aunt’s house. 

Jaden

I live with my parents, and they pay the rent. However, my mum’s business is not moving as much as it used to, and my dad doesn’t have a job. My grandma died last year and all the money available is going into her funeral arrangements. 

The landlady has been patient because she understands the situation, but I don’t know how much longer her patience will run. The last tenants who didn’t pay their rent on time were given a quit notice, and I’m scared that we might be next.

Dami

I pay ₦300,000 every year in rent. It’s always been a struggle to raise the money, but it’s more difficult now. Until last year, I was earning ₦85,000 per month. But Covid happened and I lost the job. The next job I got — which I’m still at — is as a personal assistant toa woman and that’s only paying ₦40,000. I get up to ₦60,000 – ₦70,000 only when I get procurement gigs, where I get things for people and add my own cut to the price.

Now, I’m on survival mode. Before I think of rent, I think of short term expenses. My rent will expire in May and I have ₦0 saved up. I still wonder how I will make rent, but you know what? My faith in God is kinda lit. It would be great if I could get a better paying job now. That could change everything. 

Jenna

I moved to Abuja in 2018 for NYSC. One of the first things I realised was that real estate in Abuja is the ghetto. I was coming from a place where ₦200,000 can conveniently pay for a two-bedroom apartment. But in Abuja, the same amount could hardly pay for a self-contained apartment. I discovered every settlement in Abuja during my search and eventually had to settle for a shitty place in Jabi. I paid ₦170,000 for it but had to leave after 8 months because of septic tank issues. 

After my service year ended, my PPA wanted to retain me, but they didn’t pay salaries on time and I didn’t like the job, so I turned down their offer. I was unemployed from October 2019 to July 2020 before I found a new job, which is currently paying me ₦60k. I’ve been staying at a family’s friend house, but I’m not very comfortable with that arrangement because it’s not my place. It’s been a race to raise enough money to get my own space, and I should have ₦200,000 in the next two months. I’ll need between ₦350,0000 to ₦600,000 to get the kind of apartment I want, but I can’t afford that right now unless a miracle happens. So, I guess I’ll stay in another shitty place for a year and hope to find a better paying job or a side hustle.

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