Budapest Mayor Karácsony urges Orbán to address housing crisis as rent prices soar – UPDATE
There is a housing crisis in Hungary, but especially in Budapest, with rents skyrocketing. But to solve this, we need two parties: the Orbán Government and the Budapest Mayor, who is part of the opposition.
Home rental rates in Hungary rise 9.6pc in September
Home rental rates in Hungary rose 9.6pc year-on-year in September, data compiled by the Central Statistics Office (KSH) from listings site Ingatlan.com show.
Rental rates in the capital increased 9.9pc.
In a month-on-month comparison, home rental rates edged down 0.1pc for the whole country and inched up 0.4pc in Budapest.
The monthly rental rate for a flat in Budapest’s District XIII and II, where the most rentals were listed, ranged between HUF 250,000 and HUF 350,000. The average rental rate was HUF 230,000 in Debrecen, HUF 150,000 in Pecs and HUF 160,000 in Szeged.
Karácsony and the government sees housing crisis
The Prime Minister’s recent statements suggest that the government understands that the housing situation, mainly affecting Budapest, “is unsustainable,” Gergely Karácsony, the mayor of Budapest, said on Monday.
The mayor said the housing crisis was an acute challenge in a letter to the prime minister. In a Facebook post, Karacsony noted that housing price and rent increases have now outstripped growth in household incomes.
He said Budapest had proposals and specific schemes at the ready, worked out in cooperation with the staff of the European Commission and a government body, to ensure the provision of affordable rental accommodation and to convert underused publicly owned buildings into housing, which he called the biggest housing scheme of the past decades.
He added that the 20 billion forint program would be implemented once the government “finally publishes” the related tenders so that Budapest can access related EU funding.
“I am ready to negotiate … to solve the housing crisis in Budapest,” Karácsony said.
Read also: Here’s what to expect from Budapest’s real estate market in 2025
Govt could remove obstacles to using voluntary pension savings for home purchase, renovation
Related news is that Hungary’s government has drafted a measure allowing Hungarians to use savings in voluntary pension funds for home purchases or renovations, tax-free, during the 2025 calendar year.
Social consultations on the measure will start on Monday, the National Economy Ministry said on Monday.
Over 1 million Hungarians are members of voluntary pension funds. On average, they have more than HUF 2m savings per member.
Read also: Hungarian housing market: Buyer demand reaches 2-year high
UPDATE
Fidesz councillor: Budapest suffering from housing crisis
Budapest is suffering from a housing crisis and the mayor of Budapest bears responsibility for it, Alexandra Szentkirályi, Fidesz’s group leader in the Budapest Assembly, said on Facebook on Tuesday.
In his manifesto five years ago, Gergely Karacsony promised to build subsidised housing and student dormitories, “and he had a series of other fake plans that came to nothing,” Szentkirályi said. The “thousands of billions” spent in the city, she added, had yielded “zero affordable rentals or dorms”, and the municipality’s housing agency had only managed to rent out three flats.
“Karácsony and his team are trying to sweep their total housing failure under the carpet, but they are the ones leading this city. Naturally, they are expecting solutions from the government, and now that the government has had enough of their inactivity, City Hall has started to panic,” she said.
Mayor Karacsony, let the market take care the housing problem. It is never good to interfere in the market.
Orban & Varga – are RESPONSIBLE – the Fidesz Party for the subject of this article.
Orban & Varga – DO not have FLEXABILITY – they have set the Hungarian Economy in the eroding – downward TREND it factually is.
Observation, attention must be applied to looking at all the componentry that comes back and is the Economic and Financial operation of Hungary, that in break down, the evaluation of this componentry, gives a BLEAK future outlook.
The “guts” – the “core” of the Hungarian Economic and Financial current, expecting it to WORSEN position – through the Orban and Varga policies instigated introduced in Hungary – on Hungarians, that have been a cataclysmic disaster, what they have DELIVERED us to live in this day and going forward, which will worsen, that there ONLY “feed” will be HIGHER taxes – personal citizens taxes and corporate.
The ramifications of HIGHER taxes – adds to the DISMISSAL of any kind – Government investment into areas of Public NEEDS – education, hospitals, public health services and “other”.
Orban & Varga – the Fidesz Government of Hungary – are CORNERED.
There out – tax rises at the HUMONGOUS / Gargantuan expense of citizens – quality of life in Hungary, inclusive of businesses, that they to millions have already SMASHED in the 15 years being in Government.
WATCH – the “crap” – the “Heinous” practice, use of propaganda – out of Orban & Varga – in there endeavour(s) to again HIDE there “Heinous” practices – there imposed wrongful abuse on Hungarians and there taxes paid – they have paid, had taken from them, to this Government.
Repulsive / Abomination.
Hungarians – we have been FAILED.
Fidesz has been taking taxes from Budapest and distributing it to the countryside. Funding to Budapest has been cut by the national government as punishment for not electing a Fidesz mayor. Fidesz is responsible for the well-being for people in Budapest as well as the rest of the country. Building subsidized rental housing is costly and requires cooperation between the municipality and the national government. This is exactly where EU funding should be used instead of the corrupt disaster projects Fidesz wasted EU funding on like a forest canopy walk in the middle of an open field. What is interesting is that Hungary has a housing crisis while its’ population is in decline. It must mean that much of the housing stock has been falling apart from disrepair. It’s a sign of national economic failure.