This is how much rent you have to pay in different Hungarian cities

There has been a 10 per cent increase in the rent prices since the admission points have been posted in July, reports blikk.hu. In the major college towns, the rent prices are around 260-490 EUR. This means that one would have to pay 16-32 EUR more per average than last year.

The prices vary according to demand and supply and to the increase in demand. The supply increases by 10-20-30 per cent, and the demand by 15-20 per cent at the end of July, beginning of August. Apart from university students, more and more young people choose to rent a flat as to live on their own, and more and more of them move out to big cities from small towns, or to the capital from the cities – says László Balogh, lead economic expert of ingatlan.com.

According to ingatlan.com’s data, the average rent in Budapest in 2014 was 360 EUR per month. However, in 2015 it was 425 EUR, in 2016 458 EUR, and this year 490 EUR. In the bigger college towns the situation is the same:
– in Veszprém, the rent became more expensive by 75 EUR, thus it is  343 EUR now,
– in Székesfehérvár by 45 EUR, making it 340 EUR,
– in Szombathely by 55 EUR, making it 327 EUR,
– in Szeged by 16 EUR, making it 278 EUR,
– in Pécs by 9 EUR, making it 271 EUR,
– in Miskolc by 42 EUR, making it 228 EUR.

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The situation has not changed in Debrecen (278 EUR) and Győr (310 EUR), but the rent prices have fallen by 32 EUR to 327 EUR in Sopron. The upper limit of the rise is limited by the expansion of supply and by the wages. Although a rise in prices is expected in the following years, it will be to a lesser extent because of the limitations on paying capacity.

Zoltán Pogátsa, an economist, says that the current rent prices are around 70 per cent of an average net 620 wage. Two-third of Hungarians earns below the average, thus these prices are unrealistic. If the local governments set up an upper boundary to the example of Berlin, then that might be a solution. Tenants are able to fight the market situation by moving in together, by borrowing, and by demanding higher wages via trade unions.

A further solution might be to sign a long-term tenancy contract and to establish a good and trustful relationship with the owner. A good tenant has great value, which has a beneficial effect on housing expenses.

Another way to reduce expenses

Self-helping fund members can pay the rent of their children below the age of 25 with their own savings. There is a 20 per cent (maximum 490 EUR per year) tax benefit for these deposits. This way, government support can be asked for to pay rent. The rent paid via funds a year cannot be more than the minimum wage on the first day of the year. This year this was 417 EUR.

Source: blikk.hu