OREANDA-NEWS. April 07, 2014. Head of the Association of Construction Entrepreneurs, Raivo Rand, said that Estonia needs new rental apartment space and that cooperation with the state could boost construction.

Rand told ERR radio Estonia needs 2,000 new rental properties each year, but the total number of new apartments entering the market is exactly that number, and only a fraction of those apartments enter the rental market.

He said the construction of apartment blocks only for the purpose of renting and not selling them is currently not a good investment.

Ingvar Allekand, head of development at Domus Real Estate, said the state could step in by easing the tax problem, currently renting is taxed much like other services. He said government could also help in co-financing infrastructure and land purchases, which make up a third of the cost of any development projects.

LHV's Heido Vitsur said rental apartment buildings would motivate people to move to find better jobs and increase the competitiveness of Estonia.

Currently a fifth of Estonians live in rental properties.