Dhaka house rents rise sharply

House rents in different parts of the capital, Dhaka, have marked a significant rise in a year to create an additional burden on many lower-and middle- income families amid soaring prices of essentials.

Depending on location and other features like faster connectivity, house rent has increased by 10 per cent on average in 11 areas surveyed by Bproperty, an online marketplace for real estate.

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.

Rent per square foot on average in Uttara increased from Tk 20 in the last year to Tk 26 this year, in Bashundhara from Tk 19 to Tk 21, and in Dhanmondi from Tk25 to Tk 27.

Among other neighbourhoods, house rent has increased by four per cent in Badda, eight per cent in Rampura and three per cent in Mirpur.

People showed higher interest to reside in the houses of posh Uttara, Bashundhara residential area and Dhanmondi areas and Mirpur among the selected 11 areas, revealed the study.

On the other hand, house rent in Adabor area has decreased by 10 per cent while it has remained unchanged for Banasree area, the Bproperty data revealed.

Upscale areas like Banani and Gulshan have witnessed the highest increase of 28 per cent and 26 per cent respectively.

General Manager of Product and Growth at the Bproperty Khan Tanjeel Ahmed said property prices have been going up across the city at a varied rate. "This means renting property in certain locations offers a greater monetary value than others, assuming they are relatively close to office or school," he said.

House rent, however, is high and greatly increasing every year, he said, adding in a location like Badda, Banasree or Rampura it remains relatively low.

Talking to the FE Real Estate & Housing Association of Bangladesh (REHAB) Vice-President Kamal Mahmud said the housing crisis for middle and lower-middle class families is increasing day by day due to the rising cost of almost everything.

"As the popular locations of Dhaka city are getting saturated for new residential projects, house rent is going up following the thumb rule of demand and supply," he said.

He suggested faster implementation of the government's residential projects like Purbachal, Uttara third phase and Jhilmil to address the housing crisis in the capital.

"You see private sector-managed housing projects like Bashundhara and Jalshiri are getting huge momentum, in contrast the government sector projects are lagging much behind," he said.

Without sincere efforts from the government organisation, it is not possible to solve the housing crisis in the capital city, he added.

Nasir Uddin Rakib, a resident of the city's Mohammadpur area, said he has been living in different parts of Mohammadpur and Dhanmondi for almost two decades.

He has to pay around Tk20,000 for a 900 square-foot apartment, including different charges, which takes a lion's share of his monthly income.

Talking to the FE, President of Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) Ghulam Rahman said whatever the rate of increase of house rent in the city, it is taking a toll on the low-income group.

"Low income and fixed-income groups suffer the most due to the increase," he said, adding the house owners also have the rationale to increase the rent as building maintenance cost is also going up.

He also said expansion of housing facilities across the Dhaka city under a long-term plan is a must to solve the problem.

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