Regulating house rent

The expense of living in Dhaka city is increasing day by day. House rent, food prices and travel expenses are alarmingly high here. And they are only soaring by the day. However, of all factors that contribute to our living costs, it is the house rent that eats up a lion's share of people's monthly income. According to Bproperty, an online marketplace for real estate, house rents in different parts of the capital have marked a significant rise in a year. Depending on location and other features like faster connectivity, house rent has reportedly increased by 10 per cent on average in 11 areas surveyed by the marketplace. As per the data available, house rent increased by 24 per cent in Uttara, 11 per cent in Bashundhara residential area, and nine per cent in Dhanmondi in the first half of 2023 compared to the previous year.

More than 20 million people live in Dhaka city. Among them, only 25 per cent people reportedly live in their own houses or flats. And the rest dwell in rented houses. People from across the country come to the capital city to make a living, which eventually results in the growing demand for rented houses. The house owners are capitalising on this situation by increasing rents on a whim. As a result of skyrocketing house rent, people often have no choice but to cut their expenditures on other things such as food, clothing and entertainment. There are no laws that can help control house rent and protect tenants' rights. And it seems that nobody is worried about this. Such trends have hit the poorer sections of society the hardest. Best answer to the problem is to develop affordable housing for the low as well as middle income people living in the capital city and other urban centres in the country. The government should launch housing projects to this end.

Until such arrangements are in place, for now, the authorities concerned should think of creating a platform for a rational and systematic raise in house rent. Also, through that platform, tenants should be able to lodge complaints against their landlords in case of any irrational house rent hike.

Abu Elias Linkon,

Banasree, Dhaka,

lightening_sparkle@yahoo.com