Landlord–Tenant Problems in Ghana: Rent Receipts & Broken Promises

Landlord–tenant problems in Ghana are so familiar they’ve become a national genre—part housing policy, part endurance sport.
What follows is a satirical dispatch from the Republic of Uncommon Sense, where rent has deadlines and repairs have reincarnation.

These landlord–tenant problems in Ghana are not isolated incidents but a shared reality for renters across cities, towns, and compound houses.

Rent Is Always Early, Repairs Always Late

The Landlord’s Curse — Rent Receipts & Broken Promises

In the Republic of Uncommon Sense, the rent is always early but repairs are always late. Here, the landlord’s word fades faster than fresh paint, receipts vanish into thin air, and every leaking pipe teaches you one lesson: when the mouse pays rent, the cat still owns the hole.

In the Republic of Uncommon Sense, the landlord is both king and ghost. You see him when it’s time to pay — then he vanishes when the ceiling leaks, the gate breaks, or the neighbour’s goat converts your porch into a grazing site.

Related dispatch from the Republic:

Polite Summons & Foreign Handcuffs: Notes from the Republic of Uncommon Sense
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When the Landlord Is Both King and Ghost

Seeing Him Only When Rent Is Due

The rent, however, never forgets. It arrives before its due date, standing at your door like an uninvited in-law. Two years advance, one year deposit, one month agent fee, one mysterious “goodwill” payment that buys you absolutely nothing except the privilege to sign your name.

Vanishing Acts When the Roof Leaks

When you beg for a receipt, the landlord rummages through a drawer stuffed with loose carbon papers and coughs: “Later.” Later never comes — but the next increment always does. Inflation is his side hustle, excuses are his manifesto.

Deposits, Agents, and the Mystery of Missing Receipts

Two Years Advance, One Year Deposit, Zero Accountability

Every lease begins with sweet promises: “There’s constant water supply, twenty-four-hour security, and you’ll never see the power go off.” Fast forward three months, and you’re bathing at dawn with a bucket while the guard sleeps in the kiosk, snoring louder than the barking dog that vanished after the first break-in.

“Later” — The Most Reliable Lie in Ghanaian Renting

Try fixing anything and you’ll learn the landlord’s golden proverb: “It’s your house now, manage it like your own.” The roof leaks? Buy a new one. The paint peels? Brush it yourself. The pipes burst? Call your uncle the plumber — but don’t forget to invite the landlord to inspect the repair just so he can nod and vanish again.

Sweet Promises at Signing, Silence After Occupation

When the tenant dares to protest, the landlord reminds him who really owns the ground beneath his pillow. He drops threats like confetti: “I’ll increase the rent.” “I’ll find new tenants.” “I’m selling the house next week.” No paper, no lawyer — just vibes and power.

Security Guards Who Sleep Through Robberies

Meanwhile, the tenant becomes a reluctant handyman. He learns the fine art of patching leaks with empty sachet water bags, balancing broken window panes with old newspapers, bribing the meter reader to look away from the illegal extension cord that powers half the compound.

How Tenants Become Handymen by Force

“It’s Your House Now — Manage It”

The agent, of course, is the landlord’s loyal deputy. He appears only when the rent is due, rattling his keys like a tax collector. When you ask about the broken soak-away that has turned your backyard into a swamp, he shrugs: “Boss says next month.” Next month never comes — but the notice for rent review does.

DIY Repairs Sponsored by Frustration

Some landlords dream bigger. They live abroad, send WhatsApp instructions at 2 a.m., and blame “the caretaker” when you finally find mushrooms growing on your bathroom ceiling. The caretaker, in turn, blames you: “Tenant’s fault — too much steam from your shower.”

In Ghana, rental relationships are nominally regulated under existing housing and rent laws, though enforcement remains weak, according to the

Rent Control Department of Ghana
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Agents, Caretakers, and Other Professional Disappearing Acts

“Boss Says Next Month” Economics

When it’s time to vacate, the landlord transforms into Sherlock Holmes. Suddenly, every crack is your fault. Every nail in the wall is a crime. Your deposit shrinks with every accusation until it evaporates entirely into his “maintenance budget.”

WhatsApp Landlords and Blame-Shifting Caretakers

And yet, the cycle spins. The next desperate soul arrives, signs the same promises, nods at the same excuses, and sweeps the same flooded corridor with borrowed hope that this landlord might be different. He won’t be.

Vacating Time: When Deposits Go to Die

From Friendly Owner to Forensic Investigator

In the Republic of Uncommon Sense, the landlord’s curse is immortal: he builds little but demands plenty. He collects on time but fixes nothing on time. And we tenants? We grumble, mop the floor, tighten the leaking tap ourselves — and pray the next rent review doesn’t come with another ghost promise.

Until enforcement improves, landlord–tenant problems in Ghana will continue to recycle themselves through broken promises, delayed repairs, and vanishing deposits.

Why Landlord–Tenant Problems in Ghana Never End

So next time your landlord smiles politely while folding your fresh wad of cedis into his pocket, whisper a proverb under your breath:
“When the mouse pays rent, the cat still owns the hole.”
Then lock your door — that’s the only promise you can trust to hold.