First, the thing that has to be said before any template: you cannot write a clause that evicts your flatmate.
Removing a person from premises requires notice and, if they will not go, a court. Section 44 of the Tenancy Law of Lagos State 2011 makes it an offence for any person to forcibly eject someone, attempt to, or threaten or molest them by action or words with a view to ejecting them — up to ₦250,000 or six months' imprisonment. That applies to you, not just to landlords.
What a well-drafted agreement between flatmates can do is more useful than it sounds: define what is owed, fix a notice period, decide who may replace whom, and make sure that when someone stops paying you are holding an acknowledged debt and a clear process rather than a feeling.
Get the tenancy structure right first
No clause between flatmates survives a broken tenancy. Under section 7(6) a tenant may not assign or sublet any part of the premises without the landlord's written consent, and someone occupying through the tenant without consent may count as a person in unlawful occupation rather than a tenant.
So: both names on the tenancy, or one lead tenant plus written consent naming the other. Then write the agreement below.
The clauses that matter
Copy these, fill in the blanks, both sign, each keep a copy.
1. Contributions
[Name 1] pays ₦_____ and [Name 2] pays ₦_____ of the rent of ₦_____ , due on the ____ of each month / annually on ____. Bills settle on the ____ of each month by transfer, not cash.
2. Upfront costs and the caution deposit
Agency ₦_____ , legal ₦_____ , caution ₦_____ were paid as follows: ____________ . At the end of the tenancy the caution is returned in those same proportions, less any agreed deductions.
3. Late payment
A contribution more than ____ days late must be raised in writing. If it remains unpaid after a further ____ days, the paying party may cover the shortfall and that amount becomes a debt owed by the defaulting party, acknowledged in writing.
That acknowledgement is the single most valuable sentence in the document. A debt someone has admitted in writing is a completely different thing from an argument about what was fair.
4. Notice
Either party may end this arrangement on ____ weeks' written notice. The leaving party remains responsible for their contribution until the notice period ends or an approved replacement takes over, whichever is sooner.
5. Replacement
A leaving party may propose a replacement. The replacement must be acceptable to the remaining party and to the landlord, whose written consent is required under section 7(6). Until then, clause 4 applies.
6. Persistent non-payment
Where contributions remain unpaid for ____ consecutive months, the parties agree to refer the matter to mediation at the Lagos State Citizens Mediation Centre before either takes any other step. Neither party may change locks, remove the other's belongings, restrict access or cut off utilities.
That last sentence is there to protect you from yourself as much as from them.
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7. Damage
Damage caused by one party, or their guest, is that party's responsibility to repair or reimburse, and is deducted from their share of the caution deposit. Ordinary wear and tear is shared.
8. Inventory
Jointly bought items are listed at Schedule A with their cost and an agreed buy-out fraction. Individually owned items are listed with their owner and leave with them.
9. Disputes
Anything unresolved is raised at a monthly ten-minute check-in, in person, not in a group chat.
Signed: ____________ · ____________ · Date: ________
What actually happens if they stop paying
The clauses above give you a process. Use it in this order:
- Written notice of the shortfall. Calm, specific, dated. What is owed, for which months, and a date for a plan.
- Gather the record — transfers, receipts, the signed agreement, and any message where they acknowledged the arrangement.
- Tell the landlord before he discovers it. Offering a replacement or a schedule makes you a tenant managing a problem rather than one in default.
- Mediation. Free, fast, and recognised by the Law at section 2(3).
- Serve proper notice if they must go. Where your agreement is silent, section 13 supplies the defaults — a week for a tenant at will, a month for monthly, three months for quarterly and half-yearly, six for yearly.
- Take advice before court, weighing cost and time against the sum.
And keep paying the rent while you sort it out. Your worst outcome is not losing the money; it is losing the flat and the caution deposit as well.
Note that section 1(3) exempts Apapa, Ikeja GRA, Ikoyi and Victoria Island, where your written agreement matters even more.
Find someone willing to sit down and sign this on roommates. Willingness to do it is the best compatibility test there is.
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This article explains general provisions of the Tenancy Law of Lagos State 2011 and offers a starting template only. It is not legal advice and has not been through professional legal review. For a binding agreement, have a lawyer review it.
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