Television actress Letoya Makhene is refusing to vacate a luxury townhouse in Roodepoort , west of Joburg after she was served with an eviction notice by her landlord.
This was after she allegedly defaulted on her rental payment just a month after moving into the posh property.
Letoya has also allegedly vandalised the property after a series of alcohol-fuelled soirées she hosted at the townhouse, which is a few kilometres from her grandmother’s house in Tladi, Soweto, where she lived before falling out with her uncle, Papa Makhene.
Out of frustration over Letoya’s tardiness, the landlord, Sheldon Rassie, has asked the body corporate to suspend the prepaid electricity meter to prevent the actress from loading electricity units.
The body corporate has also deactivated her access tag and disconnected her intercom to the unit at Rassie’s request after Letoya allegedly failed to pay rent, leaving him unable to pay levies and other charges.
The shocking details were revealed by the former Generations actress’s neighbours in the complex, who said they did not approve of her alleged refusal to vacate the property even after Rassie had terminated the lease agreement.
Rassie confirmed that Letoya has ensconced herself in his property and has refused to leave after he terminated the lease agreement following her alleged failure to pay rent.
Rassie said Letoya moved into his property towards the end of December last year after signing a one-year lease agreement. She was supposed to pay her first month’s rent on 1 January this year but allegedly failed to do so.
He forwarded a barrage of WhatsApp messages exchanged with Letoya in which he expressed his disappointment over her failure to honour the lease agreement.
In a message he sent to the actress on 3 January after she missed her first payment, Rassie reprimanded her.
“I had not received your rental for Jan and today is already the 3rd. I was very clear when you moved in that rent is due on the 1st and should reflect in my bank account on the 1st. In December when I requested you to pay up front you guaranteed me you will pay on the 1st without delay. Please make immediate payment,” reads the message, which Africa Daily has seen.
In her response, Letoya explained that she was unable to make payment because she was in the Eastern Cape and the promoter who had booked her to perform there had been arrested before paying her.
“Not only have I not worked but I am now stuck here trying to figure out how to get back home. I know this is a bad way to start things off and it was never my intention. I am truly sorry. I will sort it out as soon as I’ve figured something out,” she wrote.
However, she never did.
This prompted Rassie to send her another message on 8 January informing her that the body corporate would disconnect the water and electricity if she failed to pay the outstanding rent.
“Should you not be able to pay your rent, I will use your deposit to pay these expenses and cover your rent. You will then need to vacate the property on or before 31 January 2026,” he wrote.
Rassie, who was gatvol of Letoya’s endless excuses, sent her a lease termination letter on 2 February.
“I have issued you with written notice on 8 January informing you that you would need to vacate the property on 31 January should you be unable to settle your outstanding amount,” reads the letter.
Rassie said that after terminating the lease, Letoya refused to vacate the property, prompting him to send her another message warning that he would not allow her to continue occupying his property unlawfully.
“You will not stay in my property for free! That will not happen. I will not pay the living expenses on the property for you to enjoy for free. That was not part of the lease agreement,” he wrote.
Rassie said Letoya promised to vacate the property but has failed to do so.
“So far she owes me around R30,000. She says she will move in the next few weeks because the landlord of the place she is moving to is still renovating it,” he said.
Letoya could not be reached for comment at the time of publication.
