Access to rental housing in the city: Anglophone migrants’ experiences in Douala, Cameroon

This article examines the experiences of Anglophone migrants in accessing rental housing in Douala, Cameroon. Using a qualitative approach based on in-depth interviews with Anglophone migrants, it analyzes how rental transactions are negotiated in Douala from the perspective of the tenant. The rental transaction is seen as a process and divided into four stages: 1) finding accommodation, 2) tenant profiling by landlords, 3) negotiating the conditions and coming to an agreement, and 4) holding the right to stay. Through a review of the literature, combining discourses on rental housing in a Sub-Saharan African context with those on migration and translocality, five propositions are put forward and analyzed in the context of Douala. Our findings suggest that access to rental housing is experienced as difficult and costly for newcomers to the city – particularly with regards to the availability of information on housing options as well as high advance payments expected.