Birgitta Nordström lives in an apartment on the fifth floor in Hammarby sjöstad in Stockholm.
Now the landlord Stockholmshem must renovate the property’s elevator. For four weeks, the lift will be stationary.
For 88-year-old Birgitta, this means that she becomes a prisoner in her own home. She can’t handle going up and down the five flights of stairs.
– My knees hurt, so I can’t go up that many stairs, she says.
Offers no compensation
The property has seven floors, and above Birgitta live several elderly neighbors and people who also have difficulty climbing stairs. The neighbors talk about how the elderly and people with poor balance can’t handle walking up and down with grocery bags and folded walkers.
But Stockholmshem, which owns the property, will not offer any compensation.
– They say that it is a planned renovation, so they do not intend to give any rent reduction or other compensation, says Birgitta.
Should offer evacuation accommodation
She believes that Stockholmshem, which is one of the larger landlords in Stockholm, should offer evacuation accommodation to tenants who are unable to climb the stairs.
– I pay almost SEK 13,000 a month for a second, it’s not cheap. It says in the contract that I live in a house with an elevator. So I think Stockholmshem should offer temporary housing.
She doesn’t know how to solve the situation yet.
– I am 88 years old, should I rent something else and pay another rent? I’m no Wallenberg, says Birgitta.
“There are no empty homes”
Stockholmshem rejects claims for compensation.
– Of course, we fully understand that it is inconvenient for the tenants that the lift is off for a period, and always inform in good time so that they have the opportunity to prepare for it. These can be practical issues such as, for example, finding other accommodation for a period of time, getting food delivered to your home or help with shopping. We do the work as quickly as possible, so that the elevator will be closed for as short a time as possible, says Åsa Stenmark, Stockholmshem communications manager.
– When it comes to compensation, it is regulated by the Rent Act. In the rental agreement between us and the tenants, it appears that no compensation is paid when we do planned maintenance, this also applies to replacement housing. With the housing market that is in Stockholm, there are also no empty apartments left to evacuate tenants to during this type of planned maintenance measures. Therefore, we inform about what applies in good time, so that you have the opportunity to plan for it, says Åsa Stenmark.
The tenants’ association urges residents to contact the tenants’ association if they want to fight against the landlord. Otherwise, they can contact their insurance companies, who may be able to help with evacuation housing.