Growing demand for residences coupled with unchecked rents has lead to the rise of brokers, who are further squeezing tenants in the city.
Already burdened with unwarranted rent hikes and large advance payments, brokers mediating between landlords and tenants are taking advantage of the situation to make money out of the woes facing middle-income families, bachelors, single persons and students.
Middlemen reportedly rent entire buildings from landlords and rent houses to families and single tenants without deeds. However most do not have offices or contact addresses, opting to operate on the phone. Often the landlords are absent so if tenants are cheated or harassed, they do not have any means of recourse.
Mohammad Sabuj runs such a brokerage service in the city’s Pallabi with some friends. He said: “We have booked six flats with monthly rents ranging from Tk12,000-25,000. We will rent them by adding a small amount as service charge.”
When asked how much the service charge is he said Tk2,500 if the tenants are a family and Tk3,000 for single tenants, which must be paid on the first day they move into a flat.
Middlemen are free to increase rents or ask the tenants to vacate a flat at anytime they want. If a tenant refuses to leave then they are easily driven out by increasing the rent abnormally.
In some areas such as Farmgate, students who come to Dhaka for short periods of time from across the country are often the brokers’ main targets.
Banker Minhazul Abedin has faced problems with brokers. He said: “We rented a two room flat in Pallabi through a middleman. After six months he hiked the rent. When we went to the landlady she didn’t even know who I was.”
Many middlemen cheat tenants by cunning means. They help people to find suitable flats but can’t be traced to any official address because they can only be contacted on the phone. Many residents of Dhaka have been cheated by websites and flyers posted on roads that advertise houses for rent.
One letting-agency owner when contacted over the phone for help in finding a flat for Tk20,000-30,000 in Magbazar, told this correspondent to see him in person and become a “member” of his agency.
“You will need to bring two passport size photographs and your national ID card for membership,” and added: “We will charge Tk3500 in advance as service charge. If we cannot find your desired house, 50% of the advance will be refunded.”
He said after a suitable house is found, they would take us to see it and then one month’s advance had to be paid.
The man who introduced himself as Saiful Islam said he did not know any house owners and that the agency would pay the advance to the house owner from the amount paid by the tenant to the broker. “But there will be no deed,” he said.
Seeking anonymity a number of house owners said they preferred middlemen to rent out their flats and not deal with the hassles of “errant” tenants.
Single tenants and students suffer most
Many brokers rent flats from owners and rent rooms to bachelors and students at high rents. Mant students who come to Dhaka for admission and coaching for university pay twice the amount as rent for rooms.
Md Uzzal is a middleman for South Bengal Bachelor Home, a seven-storey building in Green Road, He said each room has three beds, and the rest for each bed is Tk2,500, however around November-December a whole room can be rented for Tk4,000.
In May, tenants are often asked to vacate the rooms by middlemen. Brokers said if anyone wanted to stay in the rooms during the “coaching season,” they have to pay Tk18,000 instead of Tk2,500.