Vienna – Housing costs in Austria continue to move in only one direction: up. Despite the new rent price cap, rents rose by 4.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2025 compared to the previous year. With an average of 10.40 euros per square meter, a psychologically important barrier has been permanently breached.

In times of private price increases, the Viennese municipal housing model is once again coming into sharper focus.

While inflation is slowly cooling in many sectors, the housing market remains under pressure. According to recent data from Statistics Austria, an average Austrian household paid 686.80 euros for its rental apartment (including operating costs) at the end of 2025. This represents an increase of 4.6 percent compared to the same quarter of the previous year.

The “Tenner” is the new reality

For the first time, the national average price remained in the double-digit range throughout the entire year. The situation is particularly drastic in the west: In Salzburg, tenants have to dig deepest into their pockets with an average of 12.20 euros/m². Burgenland remains the cheapest region at 7.70 euros/m², but also recorded increases.

Hope in the 2026 rent cap?

To stop this spiral, the new Rent Value Preservation Act (MieWeG) came into force on January 1, 2026. For tenants in the regulated sector (old buildings and municipal housing), 2026 brings noticeable relief: the next rent increase in April is legally limited to a maximum of 1 percent.

A cap was also introduced for the free market. Increases are now based on a formula (“3% + half of the inflation above that”), which is intended to prevent extreme jumps like those seen in the past. In addition, a uniform cut-off date was introduced: rents may only be adjusted once a year, at the earliest on April 1st.

The “cost trap” of operating expenses

The fact that prices rose so sharply in the last quarter despite the cap is also due to operating costs. These now account for around 2.60 euros per square meter. Since the rent cap only affects the net rent, rising garbage fees, water prices, and insurance costs continue to hit tenants’ wallets in full.

Conclusion: Municipal housing as an anchor of stability

In times of private price increases, the Viennese municipal housing model is once again coming into sharper focus, demonstrating that affordable housing not only has a social function, but also a stabilizing one for the entire market. Whether the legal restrictions will be sufficient to permanently reverse this trend will be revealed by the figures in April.

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By Okay Altinisik | 14-3-2026, 22:33:19