As Namibia is grappling with a housing crisis, the challenges of high rental prices and the current interest rate environment are prompting a critical examination of the rental landscape.
Key stakeholders, including market researchers, legal practitioners, and politicians, are voicing their concerns and offering insights into potential solutions.
Mandisa van Wyk, a market researcher at FNB Namibia, highlighted that the current high interest rate environment is steering consumers towards longer rental periods instead of committing to mortgages.
Van Wyk also noted that the government's efforts to address the nation's housing needs are necessary but warned that their effects will take time.
"The price of mortgages or the borrowing costs are quite high to be able to commit, and therefore consumers would rather rent, and then also the arrival of experts into the country for oil and gas exploration activities is also driving up the demand for housing, for rental properties."
Meanwhile, one of the campaigners and Affirmative Repositioning (AR) movement's Job Amupanda inconsistencies in regulating essential services, such as rent, are a concern.
He noted that many individuals often do not qualify for assistance from organisations like the Shack Dwellers Federation or commercial banks.
"A receptionist may not necessarily qualify under the Shak Dwellers Federation and all these things, but they may also not qualify for the commercial banks. The purpose of NHE was actually to be able to harmonise those. So that's why there's what is called social housing. Social housing is not the responsibility of entrepreneurs."
PDM Member of Parliament, Maximalliant Katjimune, said rent prices have skyrocketed and asked why the Rent Control Board idea has not yet been presented to Parliament.
"Many members of Parliament, particularly in the executive, are themselves landlords. So you would imagine that there is now a conflict of interest, that those who are landlords and who are benefiting from the high inflated rent prices are now the ones that are expected to bring a mechanism, a legislative mechanism such as the rent control bill."
Legal expert Immanuel Tomas explained that currently there is only the Rents Ordinance of 1977 supplemented by the Common Law.
"Common Law is basically all the unwritten laws that are created as a consequence of court judgements. Nobody has seen the Rent Control Bill, but we have heard that there is a Rent Control Bill. We have rent boards, but what do they do?"
Efforts to obtain comment from the Ministry of Urban and Rural Development regarding the rental landscape in Namibia and the implementation of a rent control board were unsuccessful.