Bengaluru's rent crisis: Bachelors and students bear the brunt of soaring rents

Sowmya Raju | NT

Bengaluru: Bengaluru, the lively tech city of India, is facing a big problem – rent prices are going up a lot, and it's hitting tenants hard, especially bachelors and students.

With more and more people working in tech here, the demand for places to live is going through the roof. This high demand is letting landlords charge really high rents, often without thinking about how much money the tenants have.

The issue of rents going up is especially bad in places with lots of tech workers and young people, called IT hubs. These areas have become super popular, and more people moving in means higher demand for places to stay.

Because of this, landlords feel they can charge way more for rent, even if it's tough for the tenants. Rent prices in areas like Whitefield and Electronic City have experienced a sharp increase.

A resident in Whitefield raised concerns, stating that her monthly rent for a 1BHK house surged from Rs 25,000 to Rs 35,000 within just one month. For students sharing apartments, the situation is no better, as the deposit rates are also soaring.

Struggles for bachelors and students

Bachelors and students are getting the worst of this rent problem. People see them as just passing through and having more money, so landlords sometimes make them pay extra money for things like deposits or amenities.

A group of students from a private college expressed their predicament, revealing, “The rent for our 1BHK is Rs 16,000, for a modest 450 sq ft space, but the deposit we paid was a staggering Rs 1.5 lakhs. Now, we are anxious about whether the owner will return the deposit.”

People are using social media, like Twitter and Facebook, to talk about their problems and find support. Hashtags like #RentControlBengaluru and #BengaluruRentCrisis are getting a lot of attention.

Social media is helping tenants share their stories and stand together. A software engineer on X posted his spending every day in the city as an example of the cost of living here.

The post stated, “My #Bangalore monthly expenses: Room rent - 25k for 1BHK, Electricity bill - 700 Average, Food cost - 20k. In BLR travel from one place to another can be very costly unless you stay near the metro where rents are skyrocketing. Almost 50k every month."

Many single individuals find themselves at the receiving end of another frustrating aspect of the rent crisis – discriminatory practices by house owners.

Complaints abound about landlords deliberately raising rents for unmarried individuals or those living with friends. A resident in Tavarekere, paying Rs 18,000 rent for a 1BHK house, humorously remarked, "Just to secure a decent house in the city with reasonable rent, I might as well hurry up, get married, and have kids."

This humorous take sheds light on the absurdity of the situation, where individuals feel pressured to alter their personal lives simply to navigate the challenges of finding affordable housing.

Landlords' power: Unfair renting

The problem here is that landlords have a lot of power in the rental market. They get houses from owners and rent them out, while the original owners only get monthly rent.

This gives landlords too much control. They charge high fees and raise rents whenever they want. Landlords know there are always many people looking for houses, so if one tenant leaves, they quickly find another.

But for tenants, especially those with a tight budget, finding a new home takes a long time. Losing a rental means months of searching.

This unequal power makes it hard for tenants to negotiate fair rents and keep affordable housing. Fixing this issue is crucial for fair renting.