Ossian Micko in Uppsala and Maria Ghaedi in Halmstad have both recently decided to rent out part of their home to bring in some extra money.
And they are far from alone.
For several years, it has become increasingly common to rent housing, but in the last year there has been almost an explosion of rental housing.
New statistics from Blocket Bostad that SVT Nyheter has seen show that the number of advertisements increased by 75 percent between January 2022 and January 2023.
- It is the biggest increase we have seen during the period that we have been working with housing, says Fredrik Strömsten, spokesperson for Blocket Bostad, and continues:
- The increase really picked up during the autumn and has continued now at the beginning of 2023.
Renting out to improve personal finances
He believes that it is a combination of several factors that drives the development.
- There is rapid inflation, higher interest rates, high electricity prices and a shaky housing market.
Together, this means that many more choose to turn to the rental market.
Either to get an addition to the economy and cover their own costs, or because the home was not sold.
Last year, around 40,000 more homes entered the rental market.
- There are roughly the same number that are produced in 2022 and 2023 combined.
So it is a strong addition, says Fredrik Strömsten.
So maybe the cost crisis will solve the housing crisis when more and more people are forced to rent to make ends meet?
- In a way, yes.
Fredrik Strömsten compares Sweden with our neighboring countries Norway and Finland, where significantly more people rent out (parts of) their private residence and announces that Sweden is lagging behind because the regulations are different.
- In Sweden, you generally get permission to rent out your home for a year at a time, while in Finland and Norway you can rent out for a much longer period, and then more people choose to turn to that market.