ARA-apartments are more needed than ever

This year there was a lot of talk about the price of housing at Vuokralaispäivät, and no wonder.  

All ARA-companies have been forced to raise their rents exceptionally high, and next year isn’t looking any easier. You may read more about the  program on the cruise on pages 4-7. We also talk more about the cost rent principle within renting in this magazine, that affects the rise of rent prices.

The rise of interest rates and their maintenance expenses affect rent prices directly, because the rents that people pay are used to cover the costs of all housing expenses. 

Despite all of this it’s good to remember that the rents of ARA-apartments are still much more affordable than market value rents, especially in municipalities growing in population.

For example according to an ARA-report, in Helsinki market value rents are up to 50% more expensive than ARA-rents.

This is why we at Vuokralaiset want to speak for ARA-housing, and we wish as many as possible had access to apartments built with government backing.

We also talk about right-of-occupancy housing in this magazine on pages 12-13 (opens in a new tab). 

The current government wishes to cease building new right-of-occupancy houses, which shows its lack of understanding for the need for more of these apartments within society. 

ARA-apartments are now more needed than ever, because the budget cuts the government has planned into both social security and general housing allowance will weaken the livelihood of people with lower incomes, most likely already next year. 

It is wrong that through these cuts they take more from the people who have the least, while they plan income tax reliefs to those who have the most. 

We at Vuokralaiset ry want to clearly bring forth this injustice, and also that affordable ARA-apartments should not be lessened, but actually their production should be increased. 

Suna Kymäläinen

Chairwoman of Vuokralaiset ry
parliamentarian