HousingAnywhere’s Rent Gap Monitor Unveils Discrepancy Between Rent Prices and Tenants’ Expectations in Europe

• The disparity between market rent prices and tenant’s expectations varies from €47 in Rotterdam to €521 in Rome.
• The discrepancy rate has generally narrowed compared to last year, with decreases in 14 out of 23 cities, reflecting the slowdown in rent price increases across Europe.

Rotterdam, March 21st 2024 - HousingAnywhere, Europe’s largest mid-term rental platform, releases its first Rent Gap Monitor, exposing the gap between market rent prices and tenants’ expectations when seeking accommodation. In cities like Cologne, the gap is pronounced, with a difference rate of 47.1% in relative terms and an absolute discrepancy of €477, while in Rotterdam, ranking lowest, the discrepancy stands at 3.1%, and €47.

Djordy Seelmann, CEO of HousingAnywhere: “The disparity between market prices and tenants’ expectations is significant in some European cities, reflecting the challenges tenants face to find affordable accommodation in stressed rental markets. However, in 14 out of 23 cities, we’ve observed a narrowing of this gap compared to last year. Coupled with the fact that rent prices in our platform experienced the lowest annual increase at the end of 2023 in the past two years, this offers a glimmer of hope amid the housing crisis”.

The HousingAnywhere Rent Gap Monitor compares the median price of apartments (mostly furnished) listed in the mid-term rental platform with the median maximum price set by users in the search filter when looking for an apartment to rent. The report analyzed over 2.9 million searches across 23 European cities in the last quarters of 2023 and 2022.

Cologne exhibits the most significant rent price difference among the 23 cities analyzed, with a notable 47.1% discrepancy rate between tenants’ expected and actual market prices. While the median rent price for an apartment in Cologne is €1,490, tenants anticipated finding accommodation for €1,013, revealing a €477 gap. Other German cities also rank high, with Munich and Hamburg placing third and fifth, respectively, with discrepancy rates of 35.1% and 34.2%. Berlin and Frankfurt rank lower with 20.4% in the capital and 17.1% in Frankfurt.

Rome registers a price difference of 35.2%, the second-highest in the ranking. However, it maintains the top position in absolute numbers. At the end of 2023, tenants looking for an apartment in Rome expected to pay €1,479, while the median rent price was €2,000, resulting in a €521 gap. Milan, Turin and Florence also show price discrepancies (20%, 18.8% and 13.6%, respectively), all narrowing compared to the previous year.

Porto records one of the smallest difference rates in Europe, at only 12.1%, but experienced the highest increase compared to last year, rising from a €19 gap to €128. Notably, Porto saw one of the highest year-on-year price increases for apartments (16.9%) in the fourth quarter of 2023. Conversely, Lisbon’s rent price gap substantially decreased, from €667 to €393, influenced by a year-on-year rent decrease of 10.9%.

In the Netherlands, tenants in Rotterdam seek rentals priced closely to actual market rates. After experiencing the sharpest rate decrease, Rotterdam’s gap is 3.1% (€47). Amsterdam presents a different scenario, with a 22.2% difference, resulting in a €400 gap due to its high prices. However, the city saw a 37.5% decrease in its relative gap following a 2.2% decrease in apartment rent prices in 2023.

While Madrid and Valencia don’t exhibit the highest discrepancy rates in Europe, these have considerably increased in the past year. Madrid’s price discrepancy (15.4%) grew by 84.6%, and Valencia's (30%) increased by 38.4%. Conversely, Barcelona follows a different trend, with a 21.1% decrease in its gap, resulting in a discrepancy rate of 10.8%. In HousingAnywhere’s International Rent Index for the last quarter of 2023, Barcelona saw the lowest year-on-year rent price increase (3.7%) among the three Spanish cities.

About HousingAnywhere Rent Gap Monitor

The HousingAnywhere Rent Gap Monitor compares the median rent price of the apartments advertised on HousingAnywhere (as reported by its International Rent Index by City) with the median maximum price set by users when filtering during their rental search on the platform. By comparing both figures, the Monitor exposes the gap between market prices and tenants’ expectations in both relative numbers (delta) and absolute numbers (price difference in euros). For the first edition of the Rent Gap Monitor, HousingAnywhere analyzed 2.9 million searches carried out by over 304.000 users seeking accommodation in 23 European cities during the last quarters of 2023 and 2022.

The report is also available in Dutch, German, Italian, and Spanish.

About HousingAnywhere International Rent Index by City for Q4 2023

For the 22nd quarterly edition of the Rent Index by City, HousingAnywhere analyzed 65,715 properties that were listed and received interest from potential tenants on the platform in the past year. Data shown includes property types such as single rooms, studios, and apartments from one to three bedrooms located across 23 European cities. Out of all the apartments analyzed, 58% were one-bedroom apartments, 31% were two-bedroom apartments, and 11% were three-bedroom apartments. Approximately 97% of the listed properties were fully furnished and 60% included bills in their rent, with all listings mainly geared towards servicing young professionals and students relocating across borders.

About HousingAnywhere

HousingAnywhere is Europe’s largest mid-term rental platform. With Kamernet and Studapart under its umbrella, it represents three fast-growing brands with over 30 million yearly unique visitors combined, 160,000+ properties available for rent and 100,000+ tenants securing their new homes, based on the 2023 performance. HousingAnywhere serves young professionals and students, primarily aged between 18 and 35, connecting them with accommodation providers. Through its advanced technology platform, tenants rent accommodation for 3 to 12 months outside of their country of origin. Headquartered in Rotterdam, HousingAnywhere operates in most European cities and recently expanded to key cities in the US, establishing a presence in over 125 cities. Driven by the mission to enable people to live wherever and however they choose thanks to a flexible renting experience, the technology scale-up employs 340 professionals globally.

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