The Ghana Rent Control Department is advising tenants and home seekers to demand rent cards in addition to receipts as mandated by the Rent Regulations Act.

The card, which is meant to keep other tenancy records and the amount tenants pay to landlords, also serves as tenancy evidence in the wake of disputes.

Stakeholders and tenants have said that this provision in the regulations is not complied with in many instances of acquiring and paying for rented accommodations.

Public Relations Officer of Rent Control Ghana, Emmanuel Harvey Kporsu, observes that many landlords do not implement this part of the regulations.

He urged that these regulations must be strictly adhered to, in order to avoid rent disputes.

“Seven days after the tenancy agreement, landlords must issue rent cards to their tenants. They come in two forms, containing details of both the tenant and landlord as well as an emergency contact.

The form also contains the monthly data entry indicating how much the tenant has paid to the landlord to avoid disputes. We also have the receipt. If a tenant pays One cedi to the landlord, the law demands that he provides a receipt for the tenant,” he said.

Meanwhile, the regulations also indicate that landlords have no rights to increase cost of rent based on improvements done on the property.

Speaking on The LAW Programme on JoyNews, Mr Kporsu further noted that property owners can only do so following an assessment of the property by the Rent Control unit.

“Because government has fixed the road the landlord is increasing rent: you cannot do that. Even though you pay your tax. What you have to do is to come to the Rent Control for reassessment. You have the right to visit the office anytime if an improvement has been done.

He added that, “Anybody who contravenes the provision of subsection 4, shall be guilty of an offense and shall be liable upon conviction by an appropriate rent magistrate to a fine not exceeding 100 penalty units or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or both".