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Understanding Sweden's Housing Market
Sweden has a structural housing shortage, particularly in its major cities. The rental market is split between first-hand contracts (highly regulated, long queue) and second-hand/sublet contracts (market rate, more accessible). Most expats begin with the second-hand market.
- First-hand contracts (förstahandskontrakt): directly with a landlord (often a municipal housing company like MKB in Malmö or Stockholmshem in Stockholm); require joining a queue that averages 5–15 years in popular areas
- Join the housing queue (bostadskö) immediately upon arriving in Sweden — you need a personnummer, and every year you wait is a year lost in the queue
- Second-hand/sublet (andrahandskontrakt): tenant subletting their first-hand contract; typically market rate and time-limited; the most common route for new expats
- Owner-occupied apartments (bostadsrätt): co-operative ownership model; residents own a share in the building association; purchase prices in central Stockholm range SEK 5–10 million for a 1–2 BR
- Rental vacancy rate in major cities is effectively 0% in central districts — competition for available units is intense
- Corporate/relocation housing: many employers providing relocation packages arrange initial furnished housing; worth negotiating as part of any job offer