Maria Jardordottir (43) lives in Nesodden in Viken municipality with her two children aged ten and eleven. She has long had problems getting into the housing market, as there is a requirement for five times her income and a high loan to buy a home. She is a qualified lecturer, but based on her income she only has the opportunity to buy a home for NOK 3 million, but it is too little if she is to continue living at Nesodden with the children. The solution is to rent housing. But now that rents are rising, that too is difficult. For the rent alone, she has set herself a limit of NOK 14,000. – Then it starts to scream a bit, she says. Today, Maria pays NOK 12,000, but she fears that her maximum limit may soon be exceeded. – It is not so easy to deal with the fact that it is rising when it is already expensive, she says. Maria has rented a total of 15 homes. Photo: PEDER BERGHOLT / news Has to move frequently Another big problem with being a permanent tenant is that she often has to move. Once again, the family has to leave the flat they live in because the landlord is going to sell. – We have lived here for almost a year. Since having children, she has moved six times. Now she is getting bored. – As a tenant, you do not know how long you will be able to rent a space. It’s frustrating, because you never get the land, says the mother of two. She also says that it is important to find a new place to live in Nesodden, so that the children can continue to go to the same school. – Moving out of the municipality is not an option. Maria also has an affinity there in the form of having grown up on the peninsula outside Oslo, and her parents live there. – It is also sad if there is to be a demographic in the municipality, in that only “perfect families” – families with two incomes can live here, she says. Maria Jardordottir (42). She says that it is difficult to read what the landlord wants in terms of time perspective. Photo: PEDER BERGHOLT / news 1 million renters 1 million people are on the rental market in Norway, and there are still more. In the past year, rental prices have risen by 4.2 per cent. – There are many places in the country where there is great pressure now, says Henning Lauridsen, managing director of Eiendom Norge. He says that the increase does not apply to the whole country, but mainly in the major pressure areas. But he emphasizes that some small places will also notice this well. – We see the same in small places where students live. In addition, the migrant workers are fully back in Norway. Henning Lauridsen, CEO of Eiendom Norge. Photo: Vegar Erstad / news For the second quarter, rental prices rose by 2.7 per cent in the four big cities. This is shown by the rental statistics from Eiendom Norge. The figures show that we have the strongest increase in rental prices in the second quarter ever, and the lowest supply. This means that there are few homes available for rent. – We recommend that people look around for housing in a slightly larger area than what they have done. It is also important to market yourself to landlords, he adds. Difficult as a single mother Lauridsen points out that it is especially difficult for those with children in these times. – Parents with children are keen to live near schools and nurseries. It is not as easy to move around. It is probably the group that is having the hardest time at the moment, he says. Maria agrees that it is extra difficult as a single mother. – As a single person, I only have one income, which makes it extra difficult, she says. She needs an apartment or a house big enough for all three of them to live there. Maria has to come up with creative solutions to get beds for everyone. – It becomes very difficult when you don’t have two incomes Maria says she is a person who depends on having roots somewhere, a so-called base. – I want my everyday life to be able to unfold without having to worry about whether I have a place to live. – I also want the children to not have to worry about losing friendships. It is despairing. Very, very disheartening. Maria has tried to buy the home she lives in, which is now to be sold. – It cannot be done. Even for a bathhouse at Nesodden, I don’t get enough loans. – It becomes very difficult when you don’t have two incomes. Maria believes she is in a vicious spiral. She believes that the explanation for the fact that more people have to rent is that more people cannot buy. – When there are more people looking to rent, the price for renting will also be higher. And when rents increase, it is more difficult to save for equity.
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