Rental market survey, 2014

For dwellings with two and three rooms in Oslo including Bærum, the monthly rents are on average approximately NOK 9 320 and NOK 11 750 per 3 quarter 2014 according to the Rental market survey (RMS). Equivalent rents in Bergen and Trondheim are on average NOK 7 620 and 9 300 and NOK 7 980 and 9 600 respectively. In urban settlements with 2 000-19 999 inhabitants the rents for dwellings with two and three rooms are at NOK 5 650 and 6 780 on average.

Several factors influence rent levels

Geographical location and the size of the dwellings are important determinants to rent level, however there are several other variables contributing significantly to rents. RMS shows that apartments are valued higher, ceteris paribus, than lodgings, row houses and single-unit dwellings.

Compared to many other countries, Norway has a relatively small rental market. The rental market is known for its diversity, no rental units are the same. The units differ according to size, type of dwelling, material standard and geographical location. This is reflected in the RMS statistics.

Periodic agreements dominate among younger tenants

The rental market survey shows that most tenants have their tenancy regulated in a written contract. The contract can be based on an agreement for a fixed period or a periodic agreement. The rental market survey shows that fixed-term agreements are more common in Oslo including Bærum compared to the rest of the country. About 58 per cent of the tenants in RMS have a periodic agreement.

RMS also shows that older tenants tend to have fixed agreements while tenants under 45 years of age have periodic agreements and short term contracts.

Who is the tenant?

The rental market survey shows that 73 per cent of the tenants are below 45 years of age, where the majority is between 25 and 45 years old. If one compares the length of the tenancy with age of the tenant we see a higher share of long term - tenancy agreement among the elderly compared to the younger part of the population.

There is high mobility in the rental market. About 43 per cent of the tenancy agreements in the RMS started in 2013 or 2014, only about 13 per cent started before 2008. The length of the tenancy has considerable effect on rents. An average of tenancies from 2013 and 2014 shows a monthly rent of NOK 8 740 while an average of the longest tenancies is NOK 6 670. There are clear geographical differences; there is a higher share of shorter tenancies in the larger cities compared to less populated areas.

Rent dispersion also within the larger cities

Considering the private, “non-subsidised” market only we see great variations in rents, also within the larger cities. The rent of a two room dwelling of 60 sqm situated in the Western part of Oslo is estimated to about NOK 11 200, but the rent depends on the material standard, the tenancy length, where exactly the dwelling is situated, on which floor, whether or not there is a balcony, a garage space, furniture, heating and electricity included etc. All else equal, the rent of a dwelling in the eastern part of Oslo is estimated to around NOK 9 200.