Public Relations Officer of the Rent Control Department, Emmanuel Hovey Kporsu, has called on landlords to avail themselves to have their rental property assessed by the Rent Control Department.

According to him, most landlords have been avoiding the premises of the Rent Control Department due to their belief that inviting the Department to assess their rental property might lead to a devaluation of same.

He says such a belief is false and unfounded.

Speaking on JoyNews’ Newsfile, Saturday, Hovey Kporsu explained that landlords having their property regularly assessed (every two years) is beneficial to them.

He said, “It shouldn’t be a problem. The fear is that many Ghanaians think if they’ve built the apartment for a long time, we’ll be using 1963 iron rod price or cement price to determine the rate. Instead, we use the current economic rate to do the assessment.

“The underlying factor has been education. People are not totally aware of this provision in the Act. They can take advantage. Because at the end of the day, it may even be like what you’re charging is even low. So landlords should avail themselves.”

He stated that applying for an assessment is an effortless task and thus urged more landlords to avail themselves of the assessment.

“It’s no anything much to apply for any assessment. It’s just like applying for a summon or coming for a summon. We come and do the assessment; we give you the certificate, then you can stand on operating your business.”

He mentioned that advertising your rental property without applying for an assessment certificate was a breach of the Rent Control Act, and such persons could face severe sanctions.