Several residents of Ghazni province are complaining about the continuous rise in house rents in recent months. They say that with each passing month, rents increase, and this situation has placed heavy economic pressure on renting families. They add that even houses lacking basic facilities and suffering from dampness and moisture problems are being rented out at high prices. According to these residents, landlords raise rents as they wish without taking into account the economic conditions of tenants, and there is no responsible institution or oversight mechanism to prevent this trend.
These residents, speaking with the Hasht-e Subh Daily, say that the large-scale return of migrants to the country has intensified the housing crisis in Ghazni city. They add that in the past they could find a house with a reasonable rent within the city, but now even on the outskirts of the city, the rent for an ordinary house has reached 8,000 to 10,000 afghanis. In their view, at a time when unemployment, reduced income, and rising prices of basic goods have severely weakened families’ economic capacity, the rise in house rents has placed additional pressure on citizens, and regulatory measures are needed to curb this trend.
Some tenants also say that in order to pay rent, they have been forced to sell part of their essential household belongings or borrow money from others.
House rents have remained high in many cities of Afghanistan in recent months and have become one of the most serious concerns for renting families. In Ghazni province as well, residents of the Qala-e Miri, Shahr-e Kohna, Plan-e Sewom, Shahrak-e Muhajerin, Shamir, and Kolah-e Sabz areas say that rising housing costs have intensified economic pressure on their families and significantly reduced their ability to pay rent.
Siddiq (pseudonym), one of the tenants in Ghazni city, complains about the unprecedented rise in house rents in the city. He says that as the prices of food and other living expenses have increased, his income from driving has decreased, and he can no longer afford heavy rents. According to him, in recent months a large portion of his income has been spent on house rent, and he faces serious difficulties covering his family’s other needs.
This tenant, who supports his 25-member family through driving, says: “A few years ago, in the Qala-e Miri area, we could rent a decent house for three to five thousand Afghanis, but now we pay eight thousand Afghanis for a house that does not even have basic facilities or suitable living conditions. My brother and I cover our family’s expenses, him through work at a butcher shop and me through driving, but even so, paying the house rent becomes harder every month. When the price of fuel, oil, and other essential goods rises, nothing is left of our income, and paying the house rent has become the family’s biggest concern.”
Shamila (pseudonym), a resident of the Shahr-e Kohna area of Ghazni, says that the rise in house rents in recent months has confronted her family with serious economic problems. According to her, until recently rent in this area was more reasonable, but now housing prices have risen significantly, making payment difficult for many families.
This Ghazni resident adds that her father supports the family’s expenses through cobbling, but with the rise in house rent, his income no longer covers the cost of housing, and their family struggles to afford the rent.
This young woman says: “A few months ago we took this house for a monthly rent of eight thousand Afghanis, but now we are several months behind on rent and have been unable to pay it. If the landlord asks us to vacate the house, we truly do not know where to go. My father supports the family’s expenses only through cobbling, and his income is only enough to provide dinner. Given this situation, paying house rent has become one of the biggest concerns of our lives.”
Zarmina, another tenant in Ghazni, says that the rise in house rents over the past two years, coinciding with the large-scale return of migrants, has made it harder for low-income families to access suitable housing. According to her, even houses lacking basic facilities are being rented out at high prices.
This woman says: “Over the past two years, as the number of migrants has increased, house rents have also risen significantly. After the large-scale return of migrants, the situation has become even harder than before. Now houses that are damp and lack a proper bathroom and kitchen are being rented out at very high prices. When we hear the price of houses, we are truly astonished at how we are supposed to manage to pay it.”
Zarmina adds that over the past two years she has repeatedly searched for a suitable house, but either the houses lacked basic facilities such as water and essential services, or if they were in relatively suitable condition, their rent was no less than eight thousand Afghanis. According to her, even houses far from the main road are rented out for three to five thousand Afghanis.
Zarmina says: “My husband works with a pushcart; some days he finds work and some days he has no income at all. With such an unstable income, paying house rent every month has become one of our family’s biggest concerns.”
Shafi, another resident of Ghazni, says that the continued rise in house rents, in the absence of oversight, makes life harder for tenants every day. According to him, at a time when unemployment and economic problems have increased, many families cannot afford heavy rents, but due to the shortage of rental houses, they are forced to accept the landlords’ terms.
This Ghazni resident says: “House rents have risen unprecedentedly in recent months. The large-scale return of migrants and the increased demand for rental and mortgaged houses have created the conditions for prices to rise. In such a situation, many landlords raise rents as they wish, because they know that if one tenant cannot afford to pay, another tenant will quickly take their place. For this reason, many families are forced either to pay heavy rents or to vacate the house.”
An investigation by the Hasht-e Subh Daily shows that the price of house rent in Ghazni province currently varies, depending on location and facilities, between 4,000 and 6,000 Afghanis per month in the outskirts of the city, and between 8,000 and 15,000 Afghanis per month within the city.
This is while the Taliban’s Ministry of Justice had previously issued a statement warning real estate brokers and homeowners against arbitrarily raising rents, stressing that violators would face legal prosecution. Nevertheless, the accounts of residents and field investigations show that these warnings have so far had no significant effect on curbing the rise in house rents, and housing prices in Ghazni continue to follow an upward trend.
You can read the Persian version of this report here:
افزایش کرایه خانه در غزنی؛ کرایهنشینان: نان شب یا کرایه خانه؟
