Interest in rental living grows among high-income earners and homeowners, SATO's survey shows

SATO Corporation, Press release 22 September 2025 at 3:00 pm

The appeal of rental housing is growing across all age groups, with homeowners in particular showing increased interest in renting. This is reflected in the results of SATO’s ‘Responsibility in rental housing 2025’ survey.

As many as 70 per cent of homeowners said their interest in rental living had grown at least to some extent. Across all respondents, half reported an increase in interest. The question used to assess this was: “How has your interest in renting changed over the past year?”

The survey also found that interest in rental housing has increased among respondents in the highest income brackets – those earning over 85,000 euros per year. Nearly one-third of respondents in this top income group reported a significant increase in interest.

According to the findings, the most common reason for choosing rental housing is one’s personal financial situation. Other frequently mentioned reasons include the ease and flexibility of renting, as well as the location opportunities it enables.

“The results support our view that the trend will continue and interest in rental housing is growing across a broad range of groups. We are also seeing entirely new groups being drawn to the ease and flexibility of rental living, not always due to financial necessity,” says Laura Laamanen, Chief Commercial Director at SATO.

The survey showed that around 90 per cent of respondents consider a good price–quality ratio, an approachable housing provider, and reliable maintenance services to be critical factors when choosing a home and a housing provider.

“Today’s rental residents don’t want to worry about maintenance or renovations, and the ability to move flexibly supports their life’s changes. Location also plays a major role in all of our housing decisions: for many, renting enables living in areas where home ownership might not even be an option,” Laamanen adds.

When it comes to location, the most important factors for respondents were good public transport connections and access to nearby nature. Proximity to services and affordable housing costs were also seen as important criteria when choosing a home.

SATO’s ‘Responsibility in rental housing 2025’ survey was conducted through online interviews in April 2025. A total of 1,004 people aged 18 to 74 took part, including both homeowners and rental residents. The respondents were from Uusimaa, Tampere, and the Turku region. SATO previously commissioned the survey in 2022. The research was conducted by Nepa Insight Oy.

For more information, please contact:
Laura Laamanen, Chief Commercial Director at SATO, tel. +358 20 134 4360, firstname.lastname@sato.fi

Media contact:
Terhi Jokinen, Senior Communications Specialist, tel. +358 20 134 4307, firstname.lastname@sato.fi

SATO Corporation is an expert in sustainable rental housing and one of Finland’s largest rental housing providers. SATO owns around 27,000 rental homes in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Tampere and Turku.

SATO aims to provide excellent customer experience and a comprehensive range of urban rental housing alternatives with good access to public transport and services. We promote sustainable development and work in open interaction with our stakeholders.

SATO invests profitably, sustainably and with a long-term view. We increase the value of our assets through investments, divestments and repairs. In 2025, SATO celebrates its 85^th anniversary. www.sato.fi/en