The challenge of finding a new home will feel even more acute for those in search of a rental apartment. Affordability may only follow in a balanced housing market where supply and demand are at par. Finding alternative ways to expand the supply of residential rental housing, especially those projects allowing a more flexible use of space, should be the highest priority at this time to take pressure off housing markets.

The slowdown in rent increases is minor, and citizens are unlikely going to see a tangible change for the better when looking for a new home. “Young professionals and students are still facing major challenges in finding available, affordable and accessible rental housing,” says Djordy Seelmann, CEO of HousingAnywhere. The moderate slowdown in rent increases is not enough to ensure access to available and affordable housing as the seasonality could turnaround the trend in the following months. While this may seem like good news for mobile talent looking for a new home, peak season for mobility has just kicked off. Quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) European rental price increases started to temper last quarter, followed by a mere 1.5% average increase across all property types this quarter. The Rent Index analyses around 64,000 properties, predominantly furnished, including one-bedroom apartments, private rooms and studios that are mainly geared towards mobile talents, including young professionals and students. Rotterdam, 4th July 2023 – The HousingAnywhere International Rent Index for Q2 2023 reveals that the year-over-year (YoY) rent increase across European cities has fallen under the two digits after 5 quarters, showing an average increase of 9.6% compared to 11.9% in Q1 2023. Apartments stand out from the quarterly slowdown trend, recording a quarterly increase of 5.1%, while rooms and studios show a decrease of less than 0.5%.Quarterly increase keeps following the moderate trend that started in the previous quarter and registers a mere increase of 1.5%.For the first time in 15 months, the average YoY rent increase in Europe is just below 10%, yet rental prices are still far from affordable.

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