MOSCOW, September 9. /TASS/. Rented housing is being used by eight percent of Russians and half of them plan to use it for a year or two, as follows from an opinion poll by the analytical center NAFI, held last July. The pollster questioned 1,600 men and women above eighteen years of age in 140 communities in Russia’s 42 regions.

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The largest share of tenants is aged 18-24 (19%), and the smallest, senior citizens (1%). Homes are most frequently rented in the Northwestern federal district (14%) and most seldom, in the southern federal district (4%). A total of 38% of tenants pay up to 10,000 rubles a month, about one third agree to give away 10,000 to 20,000 rubles, and another 7%, 20,000 to 30,000 rubles. The average housing rent is 13,140 rubles. According to NAFI, half of the tenants regard this solution of the housing problem only as a short-term one: 35% hope plan to use rented housing for another twelve months, and another 15% for two years. Seventeen percent make such plans for three years to come, and one in ten plans to keep using rented housing for 4-5 years (9%), while 7% say they will have to stay in rented housing for six years of more.

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