Rents In Tehran Rose 300% In Three Years - Real Estate Official

A board member of the Tehran Real Estate Consultants Union says rents have risen 300 percent in the last three years in the capital, with the bulk of this occurring in the last few months.

Abdollah Otadi told ILNA news website on Monday that rents have risen "terribly" in the last few months, forcing many tenants to sell their car or other properties to afford accommodation even in the cheaper parts of the city. 

The rent increases are much higher than the 25 percent rate set by the government, he noted, adding that “we are witnessing the relocation of many tenants to the outskirts of Tehran.”

Surveys by the Central Bank of Iran published in January indicated that rents in the capital Tehran have increased by more than 50 percent in one year as annual inflation is hovering over 40 percent. 

Home prices rose in local currency because real estate is a major asset protecting savings in a country like Iran where the national currency has lost value almost tenfold since 2017. In countries without an internationally accepted currency, wealth can disappear with devaluation and people rush to protect their capital.

Iran’s rial is hitting new lows against the US dollar daily amid runaway inflation and economic chaos, with one US dollar surpassing 333,000 rials on Sunday.

The drop comes as the last rays of hope for reviving the 2015 nuclear deal between Tehran and world powers are fading away, with multilateral talks in Vienna paused since March.