The demand comes from the housing companies Heimstaden, Willhem, Trianon, Rosengårds fastigheter, Victoriahem and Kanslihuset and applies to almost 15,000 apartments.
– I was shocked to hear that they are considering raising the price once more. It will be more difficult to pay the rent, it is already expensive as it is, she says.
Tove Samzelius is also a tenant at Heimstaden. She is also a researcher in social work at Malmö University.
– We see a larger proportion of families with children, which I research, who are excluded from the housing market. And it risks getting even worse when the rents go up even more, she says.
“Tenants are hit the hardest”
The housing companies justify the extra increase with higher interest rates, price increases for materials, repairs and maintenance as well as greatly increased district heating prices.
– They are also large companies that have made a lot of profit in recent years. And in the end, it is the tenants who are hit the hardest as they generally belong to those with the lowest incomes often in Sweden, says Tove.
SVT has been in contact with the housing company Heimstaden, which declines to be interviewed and refers to their previous press release:
“With great respect for how the claim can be perceived, these are special times for everyone, so we can only state that the interest rate situation has deteriorated further and that we must act on it. If you don’t get coverage for the general cost trend, both maintenance and service risk suffering – and that doesn’t benefit anyone,” says Tom Rasmussen, Head of Negotiation and Asset Management Heimstaden, in the press release.
Hear more about what tenants think about the extra increase in the clip above.