Masvingo (Masvingo Star-New Ziana) – The closure of Masvingo Polytechnic and the Great Zimbabwe University (GZU) for the Christmas and New Year holidays has left many landlords in Masvingo stranded without student tenants from whom they raked in large sums of money in rentals, most times in foreign currency.

In areas around Masvingo City centre, the suburbs of Rujeko, Rhodene, Mucheke, Sisk, Eastvale to name but a few, landlords have been sustained by student rentals, prompting some families to sacrifice to cram into a single room to make way for the lucrative polytechnic and GZU tenants.

Lorraine Muyambo, a GZU part 4.1 local governance student, said her landlord demanded rentals in foreign currency to hedge against inflation, and at the same time made this exorbitant.

“I paid the whole semester rent in American dollars (USD) and it seems all property owners in Rujeko, to be particular, want their rent in forex either South African Rand or US dollar,” said Muyambo.

A Pangolin landlady who refused to be named said that students had been a financial boon at a time when inflation has been wrecking havoc in the country, with prices of basic commodities beyond the reach of most people.

“Life has become very difficult for most of us, especially family people because our salaries are extremely low to sustain basic needs which are becoming expensive daily. Therefore, if I get one or two tenants, that money for rent covers a very big gap,” said the landlady.

Business people in Masvingo faced the same fate of the landlords as a big segment of their customer base consists of college students.
Masvingo Star-New Ziana