Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

HOMES

Property market in Sweden stable, but the elections may change that: brokers

Despite unusually hot weather, major sports events, and tighter mortgage rules, the Swedish property market remained stable this summer. But property agents believe the September elections may change things.

Published: 27 August 2018 16:40 CEST
Property market in Sweden stable, but the elections may change that: brokers
Property prices remained stable in Stockholm over the summer. Photo: Tomas Oneborg/SvD/TT

Election campaigning ahead of Sweden's September 9th vote for parliament may have a dampening effect on the housing market in the near future, says Marcus Svanberg, CEO of Länsförsäkringar Fastighetsförmedling.

He predicts that both buyers and sellers may hold off on making any hasty decisions until after the election. They may instead wait and see what the outcome is of various political campaign proposals such as abolishing tighter mortgage rules, or cutting taxes for moving house or tax deductions on interest rates.

But on the other hand, discussions about housing policies can also pave the way for further uncertainty for consumers, Johan Engström, CEO Fastighetsbyrån argues. That can complicate future deals.

“What we need is a long-term, bipartisan settlement as soon as possible after the elections,” he says.

PREMIUM MAP: How many square metres one million kronor buys you in Sweden

However, he also predicts that the supply of homes will be high, as it is difficult for both sellers and buyers to know what a reasonable price level is. For the ones brave enough to take the plunge and sell or buy a new home, there are still good chances to make a good deal, Engström predicts.

Fredrik Kjell, CEO at HusmanHagberg Sweden, agrees that the range of housing will remain high during the autumn and that high demand and stable prices are good both for sellers and buyers.

He believes the election will provide more clarity as to what the political situation will look like in the coming four years, and the market will adjust to those expectations: “Most importantly, politicians are looking at the lock-in effect that exists today in order to facilitate mobility in the housing market – it favours everyone.”

According to Svensk Mäklarstatistik, an organization which provides real estate statistics, apartment prices fell one percent in Greater Stockholm in July compared to the previous month, while in Greater Gothenburg and Greater Malmö the prices increased by one percent and three percent respectively. The prices for detached homes remained unchanged in all three areas in July.

Nationally, apartment prices fell six percent over the past year, and detached homes one percent.

We have just created and published an interactive map of Sweden that lets Members of The Local compare how much one million kronor ($110,000) gets you in all areas of Sweden. Check it out here.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.
For members

PROPERTY

INTERVIEW: ‘Most foreigners in Sweden don’t know they can get back excess rent’

In Sweden, people subletting apartments are not allowed to charge more in rent than they themselves pay. But foreign subtenants don't always know this. We asked Roland Sjölin, lawyer at the Swedish Tenants' Association, about how to get back excess rent.

Published: 18 April 2024 15:19 CEST
Updated: 21 April 2024 08:12 CEST
INTERVIEW: 'Most foreigners in Sweden don't know they can get back excess rent'

More and more of the people asking the Swedish Tenants’ Association, Hyresgästföreningen in Swedish, for help with excess rent are foreigners, Sjölin told The Local in an interview.

“The problem is that if you’re coming from another country, and you’re subletting an apartment, you’re probably not familiar with the rules in Sweden, because in other countries, it might be okay to overcharge your tenants.” 

He said that clients from India in particular seeking help from the association were now “very common”. 

“Many people come here to work as engineers in the IT sector and then have to rent somewhere,” he said, adding that as a group Indians appeared to be “very aware of their rights.”

Sweden’s rental sector is heavily regulated, with first hand contracts negotiated between landlords and the Tenants’ Association, and the rent that can be charged for second-hand contracts limited to only a small fraction above what the first-hand renter pays. 

“You’re not allowed to make any profit subletting an apartment in Sweden,” Sjölin explains. “You can only charge the subletting tenant the same rent as you [the first-hand tenant] are paying to your landlord, and then you can add the costs for internet and electricity, and perhaps a parking lot, if that is included.” 

Tenants’ Association lawyer Roland Sjölin. Photo: supplied.

You can also add a påslag or “markup”, if you are renting out the apartment fully furnished, but this cannot exceed more than 15 percent of the rent. 

That doesn’t mean that most landlords follow the law. The competition for rental apartments, especially in Stockholm, is so intense, that unscrupulous sublet landlords often try to get away with charging well over the legal amount, charging what is known in Sweden as ockerhyra, or “excess rent” and hoping that their tenants are too desperate to complain.  

What many foreigners do not realise is that even after the rental period is over, they can still get back any excess rent they have paid by applying to the Rental Board or Hyresnämnden, which functions like a court judging rental disputes. 

“If you have the evidence then it’s fairly easy,” Sjölin said. “I get a new case every second week on repayment of unfair rent, and I think that I win most of them.” 

“Nowadays, you can get paid back excess rent up to 24 months back in time, so people tend to get more money,” he added. “In some cases, they can get 200,000 kronor. In other cases, perhaps it’s only 30,000 kronor or 60,000 kronor. It depends on how long you have rented the apartment, and how excessive the rent you’ve been paying has been.”

The first step is to establish what would have been a fair rent, either by asking your landlord what they themselves pay directly or by checking with the Tenants’ Association.

“Because we negotiate most rents in Sweden, we normally know what the firsthand rent is,” Sjölin explained.

Then you need to collect together your evidence.

“It’s a good thing to have a written contract and also papers from your bank showing that you paid rent every month, and perhaps photographs of the apartment, so the rental board can get an idea of the apartment you were renting and what would be a fair rent, and also the termination for the contract so you can show the court how long you’ve been living in the apartment.” 

But Sjölin underlined that since Sweden has free burden of evidence, none of this is essential. 

“Even if you’ve been paying in cash, if you have witnesses who can testify what you were paying each month, you still have a chance of getting your money back. It’s a bit more tricky, but I’ve won two cases like that this year.” 

People in Sweden, he explained, tend to wait until the rental period is over before seeking to get paid back excess rent rather than challenging their landlord while they are still living in the apartment. 

“You don’t have any legal protection for your home for the first two years, so if you bring the matter up with the person you’re renting the apartment from you risk losing your contract and having to move out, so most people wait until they’re supposed to move anyway,” he said.

If you apply to the rental board for a refund close to the day you move out, you can then make your landlord pay back all excess rent paid in the 24 months leading up to the date you contacted the rental board.

If you are a member of the Tenants’ Association, you can contact them and ask for help with your application, but there are also specialist companies, like Orimlig Hyra AB who will buy your case off you and give you a refund within 48 hours, saving you a long wait in exchange for a cut of the money reclaimed. 

Sjölin said that the rental board normally took about 8 months to come to a judgement, but that if the person with the first hand contract appeals, that could extend the waiting time by between six months and a year.

SHOW COMMENTS