In its current form, this is at best the advertising insult of the year. ÖGB calls for a retroactive rent freeze and an end to fixed-term contracts
Vienna (OTS) – The federal government announced the implementation of a rent cap this week. “But this has to be meant seriously, otherwise it will only be the advertising insult of the year,” demands ÖGB economist Angela Pfister. Many employees can no longer afford to live. “A brake of five percent for 2024, 2025 and 2026 is de facto completely ineffective. Inflation will be below five percent in the coming years, but the massive rent increases of up to 25 percent have long since happened,” the expert calculates. “In this form, the federal government’s rent control system has a braking defect. And it urgently needs to be repaired,” continued Pfister.
ÖGB calls for a retroactive rent freeze
What has to happen is clear to the ÖGB economist: “A rent freeze must come as long as inflation is so high – and retroactively. “The enormous increases of the last few years must be reversed and limited to a maximum of two percent in the future,” explains Pfister: “This must include all rents. So category and guideline rents as well as the so-called free rents.”
After Slovakia and Croatia, Austria has the third highest inflation rate in the Eurozone – rental prices were the main price drivers. And while other countries have long since had their inflation under control, far too little has happened in Austria. “The high interest rates combined with the federal government’s inaction are a dangerous combination. The economic consequences are evident, many housing projects are now in danger of not being implemented,” warns Pfister. Non-profit housing would secure employment and provide affordable housing. “That would also have a price-dampening effect on the entire rental market,” the ÖGB expert also refers to a study by Wifo.
No more fixed-term contracts
For Angela Pfister, there are other measures that are urgently needed to get the problem under control: “A ban on fixed-term rental contracts, a federal vacancy tax and an investment offensive for non-profit housing, most importantly the earmarking of housing subsidies. In addition to the rent freeze, these are the points that the federal government must address. Then we have a chance to finally move in the right direction again, combat inflation effectively and make life more affordable.”
Questions & Contact:
ÖGB press
Patrick Fischer
+43 664 53 444 13
patrick.fischer@oegb.at
www.oegb.at
