Daily Struggle: Families with Children Face Obstacles in Finding Affordable Housing

As long as they live in an apartment, the family has ownership over it. Landlords cannot simply evict their tenants forcefully, but rather, they must take them to court, which can take years. People do not want to risk such endeavors, so they prefer to reject families with children — explained Boro Vujović

An affordable, modernly equipped apartment, located in nature, just 10 minutes by bus from the city center, Kvatrica or Maksimir. A 60-square-meter apartment that is rented out in Remete for just 350 euros on Monday is, when the ad was published on the Internet, viewed over 2100 times. For good reason, as this cozy apartment in a house has a large balcony, a court, a pantry, and looks directly into the forest...

Children? Sorry, not possible

Children are not welcome in this apartment, either. The same thing happened with over 20 other Internet ads, and when asked why they do not want children, the answers were varied. The apartment is better suited for students and employees, schools and kindergartens are not close enough, neighbors are usually childless, and it would be boring for them, and some landlords do not want children because they are a nuisance. Landlords have the opinion that families with children should not be accepted in newly renovated apartments, except for some modest and renovated ones.

Mr. Boro Vujović, director of the Opereta real estate agency, confirmed that the situation is indeed so complex that families are having a hard time finding an apartment. However, he adds that the reason why landlords reject families is more practical than emotional

As long as they live in an apartment, the family has ownership over it. Landlords cannot simply evict their tenants forcefully, but rather, they must take them to court, which can take years. People do not want to risk such endeavors, so they prefer to reject families with children — explained Bujović

Families looking for an apartment are not aided by the prices of rent. The average monthly rent for a 60-square-meter apartment, which is what a family of two children needs, is around 600 euros or just a bit less than 4500 kunas on Njuskalo. The highest rents are on the Lower and Upper Towns and in Ravnicas, as well as in Maksimir and around Kvatrica, where they are asking up to 800 euros per month, while the cheapest are in Sesvete, Dubrava, and Gajnice, where 60 square meters cost around 400 euros. It's far from the figures five years ago, when the average rent for a 60-square-meter apartment was around 350 to 400 euros. The reason for this, explains Vujović, is the lack of apartments for rent due to the rise in those rented out for short-term periods. However, better days are ahead, he emphasizes

There has been a hyperinflation of apartments for short-term rent. Soon, people will realize that it does not pay off, and they will again begin to rent out their apartments for longer periods, which will lead to a general decrease in rent prices — explained

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