Rentals must be market determined

comment on this issue.
It is important to appreciate that landlords generally do have a right to increase rents.
It is, however, the tenants who determine the amount of rent a landlord can charge at any given time.
This justifies the amount a landlord can charge at any given time. Please understand that I am not trying to justify the recent rent increases.
Landlords can only increase rents to prices tenants are willing to pay. This in essence is market determined.
Normally, one would find that a property with a rental asking price of US$500 would remain vacant if the market price for it is US$200.
It is from this reasoning that we as tenants become our own enemies. Stories are galore of tenants offering rents that are above asking price in order to secure a property.
This mode of attaining leverage over other prospective tenants affects the market prices as it forces an increase in price on surrounding properties as other landlords feel prejudiced. This act of offering high rents does not only prejudice the other tenants, it also in the end prejudices the landlords themselves.
This is because most tenants who offer such exorbitant rates are doing it for the sole purpose of securing the property. More often than not, when they secure the residence, they can hardly afford to pay the proposed rentals.
So in the end, a landlord loses out more than they would have got had the property been charged using actual market rate.
It is important to realise that though every person has a right to proper housing, it is not the property owner’s duty to provide it for people.
The duty for a property manager or investor is to get a fair return on investment that is sufficiently poised to inflation.
To lower rents where the market is increasing rents is a disservice to investors, partners, heirs and self.
To advocate for a rental freeze by affected parties is tantamount to creating a rental black market.
It scares away investors and forces other owners to remove properties from the market, thereby worsening the situation.
In essence, the problem is primarily with demand and not landlords. With estimates of over 70 000 people on the Harare City Council housing waiting list, this is a problem we are faced with for a while.
The only sustainable solution is more housing developments providing access to more properties.
Any other solution will be temporary and potentially prejudicial to either party.
It is important to realise from the statistics available that the most affected by rent increases are the people in need of cheap housing.
The main reason being that leases are not common in rental negotiations when one is appropriating the rental space.
The landlord assumes that rents can be increased at will. This inevitably leaves the tenant and landlord vulnerable. The tenant is vulnerable in that the landlord can raise rents at whatever time, making it impossible to properly plan finances.
The landlord is vulnerable in that they are not aware when they can raise rents, making it especially difficult when the tenant is particularly a good one.
This opens up avenues for abuse by unscrupulous landlords who want to milk desperate tenants as much as possible. These landlords then demand rents that cannot be justified by prevailing inflation rates.
The only way to protect both parties is through properly drafted leases. Properly drafted leases must always offer rent review clauses.
This review clause will in essence spell out when the review will occur and whether it is open market or set at specific rates or percentages of rental.
The clause might actually state that a review may not occur during the subsistence of lease.
It in the end makes it easy for both contracting parties when the rental review does occur, because it will be expected. This is critical because no tenant loves a rental review that increases rent and no investor likes being prejudiced of potential income. A lease then strikes a balance between these contradicting needs.