{
  "id": 1664054,
  "title": "Hostel owners challenge legality of Rent Control campaign over high fees",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/hostel-owners-challenge-legality-of-rent-control-campaign-over-high",
  "topic": "business",
  "section": "Business",
  "published": "2026-08-18T07:22:23.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Adom Online",
    "slug": "adom-online",
    "url": "https://www.adomonline.com/hostel-owners-challenge-legality-of-rent-control-campaign-over-high-fees/"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "The Hostel Owners Association of Ghana has disputed the Rent Control Department's recent enforcement campaign targeting private student hostels. Acting Rent Commissioner intensified efforts to assess hostel facilities and demand reductions in fees, particularly at public universities. However, hostel owners at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) argue the Rent Control Department lacks legal authority to regulate their operations because purpose-built hostels do not fall under rent control laws. The department has threatened to close unregistered facilities and those charging excessive fees since the start of 2026. The association maintains that the Rent Act, 1963 (Act 220), and the Rent Control Law, 1986 (PNDCL 138), exclude dwellings where rent includes meals or services. They classify hostels as commercial enterprises providing accommodation alongside services, thus regulated under tourism and local governance statutes. The association rejects terms like \"exploitative\" and \"criminal\" for hostel owners. Counsel Michael Gyang Owusu emphasized that the Rent Commissioner cannot unilaterally assess rents without tenant or landlord consent. They caution that imposing rent controls in a supply-constrained market could drive private operators out of the sector, worsening the student accommodation shortage. Factors like rising construction costs, high borrowing rates, and currency depreciation contribute to increasing hostel fees, according to the association. Property economist Dr Kenneth Donkor Hyieman from KNUST warns that rent control measures could negatively affect hostel quality and supply, potentially leading to a shortage and black market. The KNUST Hostel Owners Association calls for a transparent, cost-based rental index, increased public investment in student accommodation, and more public-private partnerships to boost student housing supply.",
  "summary": "The Hostel Owners Association of Ghana has challenged the legal basis of the Rent Control Department’s ongoing enforcement campaign against private student hostels. The Acting Rent Commissioner has in recent months intensified efforts to assess hostel facilities and demand reductions in accommodation fees, particularly at public universities. However, hostel operators at the Kwame Nkrumah…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}