Daily Trust - the online edition

There is no season when new migrants would not flock to Abuja to start their careers. They begin the search for their dream apartment, real estate agents say, with the same single-minded determination that they will make it.

But that determination only goes so far when it comes to Abuja real estate.

The first shock for a first-time renter will probably be the prices.

Consider that the average annual rent for a one-bedroom in, say Jabi area of Abuja, is more than N500,000 to N600,00 and that the average for a three-bedroom is just overN600,000 to N800,000.

"Abuja is a goldmine for real estate agents and brokers," said Paul Akanbi, an agent at Citi Habitats who specializes in rentals. "They all want to be in the Central Area and they all want the cheapest apartment."

Mr. Akanbi said that when he shows prospective renters what their budget really can buy, they are sometimes so appalled that "they think I’m trying to fool them or something and they run away and I don’t hear from them again."

"Almost every single person I’ve worked with thinks there’s an ideal apartment waiting right for them," he said.

The thousands of new entrants who will be driving the engine of the city’s rental market from now until September, will quickly learn that renting in Abuja is not like renting anywhere else.

The second shock is likely to be how small a flat in the surburbs can be. It is not uncommon in Abuja, for example, to shop for a junior one-bedroom or a convertible one-bedroom, neither of which is a true one-bedroom at all but really a self-contained that already has or can have a wall put up to create a bedroom.

Apart from the realities of price and space, the requirements set by Abuja landlords are also bound to help turn a bright-eyed first-time renter’s outlook grim. To start with, landlords want only tenants who earn at least many times the monthly rent, which means an N1,200,000 annual salary for a N500,000 apartment.

"There’s a lot of stuff that doesn’t happen in other markets," said Tunde Afolabi of Citi Habitats. "On top of that, every owner also has their own requirements, so just because you qualified here doesn’t mean you’ll qualify there."

So the key to finding that first apartment is to learn as much as possible about the market before arriving in the city and also to know that keeping an open mind will make the search easier. "People who walk in with blinders on and can only say, ‘I want, I want, I want,’ when their budget doesn’t allow for it, they create this anxiety," Mr. Afolabi said. "You have to be flexible and you have to come to the city armed with information and financial paperwork."

In certain neighbourhoods, he said, "there may be opportunity to get concessions from landlords; maybe one month’s free rent or a chunk off the brokerage commission."

That elusive N250,000 one-bedroom apartment, for example, can be found in neighborhoods like Dutse-Alhaji, Kubwa, Gudu, Mpape, Gaduwa, Lugbe districts, and probably shanty areas like Chika, Aleita etc. And the average price for tenement is hardly less than N150,000 in most Abuja neighbourhoods.

Jibrin Lawal who moved into a two-bedroom in Utako district last June with his roommate, Audu Sule, said he knew the first thing they had to decide was whether to use an estate agent or broker. For placing you in an apartment, brokers typically charge 10-15 percent of the annual rent.

Some management companies represent only high-end buildings that would be too expensive for a typical new hire, but others offer a range of apartments.

For instance, Hallmark Properties, which manages some 2,000 apartments in about 30 buildings in Maitama and Asokoro, offers what it describes as middle- and upper-middle-income housing. Peter Edomobi, a principal, said, "Our clientele are mostly high class and upper echelons of the society"

"It all boils down to money," he said. "If you can afford what you initially say is your dream apartment, then great, let’s go out and get it."