Kuupik Kleist, the Prime Minister of Greenland, has supported a move to increase rental prices by up to 50 percent on some government owned properties.
Kleist advised the Greenland parliament in an open debate session that the failure of the previous government to reassess rental prices for the previous two years, which it is supposed to do every year, had obligated the incumbent leaders to adjust prices accordingly. The increases will mainly apply to housing that is utilised by senior civil servants, which has been lying at below market rates.
The prime minister claimed that it was appropriate that “well-paid public servants paid rents comparable with those paid by regular renters.” It is envisaged that the homes would be renovated using the additional income generated by the rent rise.
Presently there is no scope within the existing budget to perform renovations on the properties but the forecasted additional charges would enable improvements in key areas such as insulation.
Jens B Frederiksen, the Housing Minister also added that it was a long-term goal of the government to enable people to purchase their own homes where possible. “This gives people renting single family homes and duplexes a unique opportunity to consider whether they want to take part in the “rent to own” programme,” Frederiksen claimed, adding also that prices for government owned properties would still remain lower than those of privately-owned apartments, even with the raised rental charges.
Renters should not be punished for the government’s negligence in assessing the cost of providing rental properties in a timely manner.
A fifty percent increase is a shock for anybody. What should be done is a 15% increase yearly until the rents are where they should be. Then, fix the increases to a formula that uses the inflation rate, cost of upkeep, and a survey of Greenland worker’s incomes every year. If the stats show average incomes increasing at 5%/year, then that’s the maximum allowable increase in rental prices. If the average Greenland worker’s income has fallen, then the rent should drop or hold at its current rate if inflation and upkeep make a rent reduction impossible.
There ought to be a universal law, applicable in any land or nation, that forbids shocking increases because of government or management negligence. That’s the sort of thing that throws people out of their homes and causes inexcusable dislocations and trauma.