Dhaka's house rent rises almost 30pc in five years, 5pc after pandemic exodus

Dhaka house rents hop up undeterred in times fair or foul as official data show the rentals increased nearly 5.0pc even after the pandemic virus had sent many of the city-dwellers on an exodus.

The rent hike in the capital was recorded 29 per cent in the last five years, making living for the limited-income group harder by the day these days of across-the-board price rises.

The Covid-19 pandemic has even failed to check the surge in home hire in Dhaka city where it has escalated nearly 5.0 per cent rent within a year between June 2020 and June 2021, Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) in a recent study showed.

Meanwhile, house rents across the country have also gone up 21.26 per cent in the last five years between the fiscal year (FY) 2018 and FY2021, the survey found.

Analysts say the unrelenting rise in house rent has already mounted pressure on the migrated inhabitants of Dhaka city, which, in turn, is ultimately reducing the spending on nutritious food intake with its multidimensional effects.

The house rent in Dhaka eats up even half of the income of some middle-and lower-middle- income groups, according to their count.

The rate of house-rent expansion in the capital was recorded at 28.53 per cent, thanks to higher population density in the Bangladesh mega-city, sans effective land-use and settlement policy, according to the BBS findings.

An FE analysis has found the house rent having surged at a rate of 5.71 per cent in the city every year, on average, while more than 4.25 per cent across the country.

Five years ago, in the fiscal year FY2017, the house rent index (HRI) was recorded at 4024.92 which now rose to 5111.66 in the first three quarters of the last FY2021.

According to the BBS survey, the HRI in the Dhaka city in June 2021 swelled to 8320.9 from 7988.45 in June last year.

The FE analysis has also found that the trends in rent escalation for the lower-middle and middle-income groups were higher than in the higher-income group in Dhaka as well as across the country.

Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) Chairman Dr Ghulam Rahman told the FE that the CAB had a small survey on the house rent in Dhaka where they found some 8.0-9.0-per cent increase.

"The middle-and lower-middle classes are under massive pressure with the surge in house rents in Bangladesh, especially in the Dhaka city. The Covid-19 pandemic created further pressure on them," he said.

The government should go for building public housings in a bid to rent those out to the poor, lower-middle-and middle-income people in Dhaka city, Dr Rahman suggests.

Besides, the government should take some housing projects for apartments at affordable prices for the people in Dhaka and other growing cities across the country, the CAB chairman said.

Economist Dr Mustafa K Mujeri told the FE that since the demands for houses are increasing day by day, the owners increase the fee for using the residential facilities without maintaining government rules and regulations.

He guessed that the house-rent hike might be higher than BBS's survey data.

The government should impose strict rules and regulations for controlling the house rent in a bid to make the housing affordable to the general people, said Dr Mujeri, a former Director- General of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS).

The economist urged the government to make publicity of the rules and regulations aiming to make both the consumers and house owners aware about how to go along.

"Since the inhabitants in Dhaka city are spending a significant portion of their income for renting houses, their expenditure for nutritious food is decreasing," Dr Mujeri said.

Meanwhile, many urban planners and experts in the housing sector suggest expansion of PPP real-estate ventures pivoted by right land-use and house-building policies to make affordable and quality apartments for the commoners and middle class, as everybody has the right to have a roof of their own over their head.

[email protected]