Private renting in Denmark: foreign investors in the crosshairs

In international discussions, Denmark’s private rented sector is noted mainly for the complexity of the rent-control system, where different systems apply depending on the age and built form of the dwelling. Arguably, though, the private rented sector is now the most interesting of Danish housing tenures, as in recent years the sector has become a political battleground. Politicians have adopted measures to try to deter certain overseas investors whose activities, they say, have pushed up private rents in cities. Similar debates are taking place in other countries and the Danish experience may offer some lessons, though similar forces can have very different effects in different places. As always with housing, context is all.