The demand for housing for rent has soared quickly in Klaip da, Kaunas and Vilnius, forcing tenants to accept all conditions set by property owners. The MP notes that increasing electricity, district heating and tap water fees must also be taken into account, which may reduce people's purchasing power and increase the risk of poverty.
The civil code stipulates that the government can set the maximum rent fees for residential housing leased under commercial conditions, but the central government is not taking advantage of this and otherwise has limited options to intervene in the rental market, according to Paluckas.
The MP argues that if municipal councils were allowed to set the maximum rent fees, the problem of expensive rent would be addressed where it exists, for example, in Vilnius. Paluckas notes that similar regulations already exist in Western European cities like Berlin, Copenhagen and others, and are widely supported by citizens.