A survey of Sweden's tenants' organisations and their footprint in the Rent Tribunals
The Swedish Rent Collective Bargaining Act is built on organisational plurality as to which actors may represent the tenant interest. H. Wac Legal & Business Partner presents, for the first time, a national survey of Sweden's tenants' organisations. Which organisations exist in Sweden? Which of them bring or face proceedings before the country's Rent Tribunals, in which case types and in which role?
Contents
- 03SummaryFive findings in brief
- 04Method: empirical studyExtracts from eight Rent Tribunals' case registers
- 05The organisationsNegotiating mandate and legal footprint
- 06ProfilesSweden's tenants' associations
- 07Representatives and affiliationsRoles, ownership and cooperation agreements
- 08Known tenants' organisationsThe market's actors – inside and outside the tribunals
- 09The debate and the realityMedia attention versus negotiating volume
- 10Publishing capacityOwn media and communication channels
- 11Cases per Rent TribunalGothenburg and Stockholm dominate
- 12Development 2023–2026A break in trend in 2024
- 13Case typeSpecial arbitrator cases dominate
- 14The organisations' roleRespondent in almost nine cases out of ten
- 15Who brings the cases against the organisations?Consultancy companies or landlords in groups
- 16The organisations as applicantsAgreements on collective bargaining procedure and private landlords
- 17Plurality per Rent TribunalStockholm, Västerås and Gothenburg
- 18Conclusions and implicationsWhat the figures mean for market actors
- 19About the reportScope and definitions
About the series
H. Wac Market Report is a recurring report series from H. Wac Legal & Business Partner KB on the legal infrastructure of the Swedish rental housing market, applying scientific research methods to produce unique market knowledge. Each issue is based on public primary sources.
Series editor: Dr Haymanot Wachtmeister (LL.M., Iur. Dr.)
Publication and redistribution
- The reports are published at hwac.se and are protected by copyright.
- The report may be cited with attribution: H. Wac Market Report No. 1/2026, “Tenants' organisations in the Rent Tribunals”. The report does not constitute legal advice.
Contact
Haymanot Wachtmeister, PhD
info@hwac.se
Seven tenant-side actors appear before the Rent Tribunals – one of them accounts for 99.9% of party records
- One organisation, six actors at the margin – most with shared interests with other organisations or companies. The Swedish Union of Tenants, Hyresgästföreningen (reg. no. 802001-5106), accounts for 15 678 of 15 698 party records – a share of occurrences in the register data, not a market share. Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster (8), Hyresgästföreningen Uppsala Studentbostäder (5), Organisation av hyresgäster (4, plus submissions without party status), Göteborgs Boendeförening, Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening and Hyresgästföreningen Kristinelundsvägen 2-24 (1 each) share the remaining 20. Three of the six have documented shared interests with other organisations or companies: HUS with Hyresgästföreningen, Organisation av hyresgäster with Urban Rights Sweden AB and FSH with FBB through its chair (page 7).
- Volume is concentrated in the metropolitan tribunals. Gothenburg (5 214 cases) and Stockholm (3 872) together account for 59% of cases, followed by Jönköping (1 803), Umeå (1 433), Linköping (1 274), Västerås (719), Malmö (633) and Sundsvall (431).
- 2024 was a break in trend. New cases rose from 1 908 in 2023 to 6 870 in 2024 (3.6 times) and remained at 5 373 in 2025. The driver is the dispute-resolution procedure with a special arbitrator introduced on 1 January 2023.
- The organisations are defendants, not claimants. In 88% of party records the organisation is the respondent. Where the case type is given in the extract, 83% are applications for a special arbitrator, mainly from the consultancy companies of the Swedish Property Federation (Fastighetsägarna). When the organisations themselves apply, it concerns the right to, or extension of, an agreement on collective bargaining procedure against private landlords.
- Plurality exists at three tribunals. More than one tenants' organisation appears in Stockholm (14 records beyond Hyresgästföreningen), Västerås (5) and Gothenburg (1). In Jönköping, Umeå, Linköping, Malmö and Sundsvall a single organisation appears.
An empirical study of the cases before the Rent Tribunals
Number of cases reviewed at the Rent Tribunals
| Rent Tribunal | Number of hits |
|---|---|
| Gothenburg | 5 216 |
| Stockholm | 3 917 |
| Jönköping | 1 829 (1 803 rows in the extract) |
| Umeå | 1 530 |
| Linköping | 1 358 |
| Västerås | 827 |
| Malmö | 682 |
| Sundsvall | 432 |
| Total | 15 791 |
Method
- The report is an empirical study combining a survey of tenants' organisations with an analysis of their occurrence in the Rent Tribunals' case registers. All register records covered by the study's searches and meeting its scope are included in the analysis.
- The tenants' organisations were identified through searches in several search engines. Information on negotiating mandate and geographic presence was taken from the organisations' own websites.
- The case registers were reviewed on the basis of the designation “hyresgästförening” (tenants' association).
- To strengthen the accuracy of the study, H. Wac examined whether other tenants' organisations had left a footprint in the Rent Tribunals at an earlier date, which led to the finding of Göteborgs Boendeförening and Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening.
- A case is defined as a unique case number at a given Rent Tribunal. A case may contain several register records.
- The dataset can be ordered from H. Wac: info@hwac.se.
Around ten known tenants' organisations in Sweden in 2026 – seven appear in legal cases before the Rent Tribunals, and one actor is predominant in both negotiating mandate and legal footprint
Tenant-side actors' legal footprint – party records and cases per organisation, full data
| Organisation | Reg. no. | Rent Tribunals | Party records | Cases | Applicant | Respondent |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyresgästföreningen | 802001-5106 | Gothenburg, Stockholm, Jönköping, Umeå, Linköping, Västerås, Malmö, Sundsvall | 15 678 | 13 006 | 1 835 | 13 769 |
| Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster (FSH) | 802552-4771 / 802550-7990 | Stockholm | 8 | 8 | 1 | 6 |
| Göteborgs Boendeförening | not stated in the case diary | Gothenburg | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening | 802014-2876 | Stockholm | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Local tenants' associations with their own party designation | 817602-1486 (Uppsala); none (Kristinelundsvägen) | Stockholm, Västerås | 6 | 6 | 6 | 0 |
| Organisation av hyresgäster | none; counsel via Urban Rights Sweden AB | Stockholm | 4 | 4 | 4 | 0 |
Applicant and respondent do not sum to party records because the roles external recipient (66) and counsel (9) are added. The cases of Göteborgs Boendeförening and Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening were added from case diaries.
Distribution of negotiating mandate among tenants' organisations – number of dwellings with collectively negotiated rent, where known
Sources: Hyresgästföreningen's annual report 2025, studenthus.nu, Hem & Hyra 2017, FSH and hyresgasterna.org. No data for the other organisations. Of the known mandate, Hyresgästföreningen accounts for 99.0%. HUS's operations have been run by Hyresgästföreningen since 2016 under a cooperation agreement.
Sweden's tenants' associations – seven tenant-side actors with a legal footprint in the Rent Tribunals
Hyresgästföreningen (reg. no. 802001-5106) appears under its own name or through its regions. Present at all eight tribunals.
Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster (FSH) negotiates for 2 000 dwellings and appears in 8 party records in Stockholm: 6 as respondent (including applications for a special arbitrator), 1 as applicant – against Hyresgästföreningen et al. (H 2015-26) – and 1 as external recipient. Its chair, Niclas Blåklinth, is also spokesperson for FBB – Företagsbostadsföretagen (the corporate housing companies).
Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening (reg. no. 802014-2876) was applicant, together with an individual tenant, in a dispute over a negotiation clause in Stockholm (H 11124-14); dismissed 2015-08-26. Added from the case diary; the file has been disposed of.
Göteborgs Boendeförening was applicant for the right to an agreement on collective bargaining procedure in Gothenburg (H 4794-19) against the City of Gothenburg's premises committee; rejected 2020-01-23, appealed to the Svea Court of Appeal.
Hyresgästföreningen Uppsala Studentbostäder (HUS) (reg. no. 817602-1486) has negotiated for over 30 years for some 7 000 student dwellings in Uppsala. A separate legal entity, but according to Hyresgästföreningen's website, Hyresgästföreningen has run HUS's operations since 2016 under a cooperation agreement. Since the landlords terminated the agreements on collective bargaining procedure in June 2025, HUS is applicant in 5 cases on extension of agreements on collective bargaining procedure in Västerås.
Hyresgästföreningen Kristinelundsvägen 2-24 is applicant in one case in Stockholm (H 8866-25). Any link between the local associations and Hyresgästföreningen is not apparent from the register.
Organisation av hyresgäster is applicant in 4 cases in Stockholm and has no registration number. According to its own submission (H 10930-26, exhibit 17) it was formed by, among others, co-founders of Urban Rights Sweden AB, works against “hotelification” and is normally represented by Urban Rights employees. All members are also shareholders in Urban Rights Sweden AB. It also files submissions without party status in block-lease cases where the applicant block tenant is a corporate housing company.
Several tenant-side actors share interests with other organisations or companies – and one of the challengers is operated by Hyresgästföreningen
| Organisation | Representatives (documented role) | Shared interests, ownership and affiliations |
|---|---|---|
| Hyresgästföreningen | Marie Linder, national chair; 840 employees (annual report 2025) | Owns HGF Fastigheter AB. Has run HUS's operations since 2016 under a cooperation agreement. |
| Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster (FSH) | Niclas Blåklinth, chair | Also spokesperson for FBB – Företagsbostadsföretagen. Former CEO of Be Resident (role ended according to his own public post). |
| Hyresgästernas Förening | Mats Hellberg, chair and spokesperson | The actor itself discloses the representative's occupation/employment on its website. |
| Hyresrätt Stockholm | Jan Bergström, c/o addressee in the registration document | Board or employment role not apparent from the document. |
| Djurgårdens hyresgästförening | Ann-Christine Jernberg, chair | The statutes provide for expense reimbursement, no board fees. |
| Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening (RHI) | Sofia Hellmers, chair | – |
| Stockholms Studenthyresgästers Förening (SSF) | Gottfrid Rehnman, chair; Michael Kumlin, student tenants' ombudsman | The actor itself discloses the representative's occupation/employment on its website. |
| Hyresgästföreningen Uppsala Studentbostäder (HUS) | Dianna Zeleskov, chair; Klara Lundahl, movement developer; Johan Persson, administrator | Lundahl is also a movement developer at Hyresgästföreningen (Uppsala office). HUS's operations have been run by Hyresgästföreningen since 2016. |
| Göteborgs Boendeförening | No information | – |
| Organisation av hyresgäster | Leo Giertz, Adam Wais and Sebastian Ländin, founders | Founders of Urban Rights Sweden AB; all members are shareholders in the company. Represented before the Rent Tribunal by Urban Rights employees. |
Information is taken from the organisations' own websites, the Swedish Tax Agency's registration notice for Hyresrätt Stockholm (802510-4434, registered 2017-08-01), Hyresgästföreningen's website (HUS) and bostadspolitik.se, as of October 2026. The information concerns documented roles; board positions are not employment. Insufficient information is available for Göteborgs Boendeförening and Hyresgästföreningen Kristinelundsvägen 2-24.
Tenants' organisations that own real property or real property companies
Hyresgästföreningen owns HGF Fastigheter AB. No other tenants' organisation reports ownership of real property.
Analysis
HUS is a separate legal entity with its own negotiating mandate, but its operations have been run by Hyresgästföreningen since 2016; plurality in Västerås is therefore formal rather than operational. Organisation av hyresgäster is in practice difficult to distinguish from Urban Rights Sweden AB, given the case types and the ownership links.
Around ten tenants' organisations are known on the market – six of them appear in the Rent Tribunals' registers
| Organisation | Reg. no. | Activity | In the data | Known negotiating counterparties | Website |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyresgästföreningen | 802001-5106 | National union with regions; has negotiated rents since the 1960s. Historically documented links to the Social Democrats; growing influence from the Left Party (Bostadspolitik.se). | Yes – all eight tribunals | Public Housing Sweden, the Swedish Property Federation, a majority of the country's property owners | hyresgastforeningen.se |
| Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster (FSH) | 802550-7990 | Nationwide, primarily Stockholm County and Deje; has negotiated rents for 2 000 dwellings since 2025. No known links to political parties. | Yes – Stockholm | Hyresbostadsägarna i Stockholm, Titania, Landia | sverigeshyresgaster.org |
| Hyresgästernas Förening | not stated | Nationwide: Stockholm, Uppsala, Gävle, Kiruna, Umeå, Gothenburg and Lund; negotiates for 20 properties with 606 dwellings. No known links to political parties. | No | Hyresbostadsägarna i Stockholm, Titania (agreement 30 September 2026) | hyresgasterna.org |
| Hyresrätt Stockholm (named Hyresrätt Sverige on hyresgasterna.org) | 802510-4434 | Registered with the Swedish Tax Agency 2017-08-01. Negotiating mandate unknown. No known links to political parties. | No | Not stated | hyresrattstockholm.se |
| Djurgårdens hyresgästförening | 802531-4702 | Local association, Djurgården in Stockholm; has negotiated rents since the 1980s. No known links to political parties. | No | The Royal Djurgården Administration | djurgardenshyresgast.se |
| Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening (RHI) | 802014-2876 | Local association, Råcksta in Stockholm; has negotiated rents since the 1970s. No known links to political parties. | Yes – Stockholm (case diary) | Wallenstam, Arbetarebostadsfonden | rhiracksta.se |
| Stockholms Studenthyresgästers Förening (SSF) | not stated | Student housing in Stockholm; has negotiated rents since the 1960s. No known links to political parties. | No | Stockholms studentbostäder | ssfstudent.se |
| Hyresgästföreningen Uppsala Studentbostäder (HUS) | 817602-1486 | Student housing in Uppsala, some 7 000 dwellings and corridor rooms; has negotiated rents since the 1980s. Operations run by Hyresgästföreningen since 2016 (cooperation agreement). No known links to political parties. | Yes – Västerås | Uppsalahem, Heimstaden, Rikshem, Stiftelsen Ultuna Studentbostäder | studenthus.nu |
| Göteborgs Boendeförening | 857205-6219 | Local association in Gothenburg. No known links to political parties. | Yes – Gothenburg (case diary) | City of Gothenburg (application for an agreement on collective bargaining procedure) | facebook.com (Göteborgs Boendeförening) |
| Organisation av hyresgäster | not stated | Stockholm; active against block leasing of corporate housing, represented by Urban Rights Sweden AB. Negotiating mandate unknown. No known links to political parties. | Yes – Stockholm | Not stated | urbanrights.se |
Compiled as of October 2026 from the organisations' own information, including the list at hyresgasterna.org (published by Hyresgästernas Förening). The information has not been verified by H. Wac.
Other actors that negotiate rents
KOMBO (Kårservice, Linköping; bostad.karservice.se) negotiates rents, maintenance and compensation for over 5 000 student dwellings in Östergötland (Hem & Hyra, 2017). The negotiating right is held through Kårservice vis-à-vis Studentbostäder i Linköping AB, ByggVesta Studentbostäder, Heimstaden, Studentbo i Norrköping AB, K2A, SBS and HSB, in cooperation with the residents' associations in each area. No known links to political parties. The student unions' negotiating activity shows that the Rent Collective Bargaining Act's concept of an organisation in practice accommodates more actors than the classic tenants' associations; these negotiations rarely leave a trace in the Rent Tribunals.
Alternative tenants' organisations have received considerable attention in the 2026 industry debate – despite a negotiating volume of roughly one thousandth of Hyresgästföreningen's
Publications on alternative negotiating parties, 1 January–11 October 2026 (minimum count)
| Source | Written publications | Podcast episodes |
|---|---|---|
| Bostadspolitik.se | 20 | 6 |
| Fastighetstidningen | 6 | – |
| Hem & Hyra | 8 | – |
| Total | 34 | 6 |
Search-based inventory of Bostadspolitik, Fastighetstidningen and Hem & Hyra using the terms FSH, Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster, Hyresbostadsägarna, hyresgästorganisation and Hyresgästernas Förening. Only texts with a substantive link to alternative negotiating parties' results, mandate, independence or establishment are included. Articles in different outlets on the same event are counted separately. The inventory measures publishing activity, not reach, and is not a complete media measurement.
Moments in the debate
- 28 Jan Hem & Hyra scrutinises a new tenants' association's approval of a SEK 16 000 rent for a two-room flat in Rågsved; four articles in two days.
- 9 Mar Fastighetstidningen: “The legitimacy of Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster is tested”.
- 3 Jun New property owners' association launched; Fastighetstidningen: “New association tests the limits of the utility-value system”.
- 20 Aug FSH states that it has negotiated rents for around 2 000 dwellings.
- 28 Aug Arbitrator recommends a 3.2 per cent rent increase for Titania – the first arbitrator decision in an FSH negotiation.
- 3 Sep Hyresgästföreningen wants to scrap the dispute-resolution procedure; Fastighetsägarna's CEO Anders Holmestig wants to keep but reform the arbitrator system and stresses the parties' independence.
- 22 Sep Fastighetsägarna's five CEOs: more organisations can be welcomed, but mandate, funding and governance must be transparent.
- 30 Sep Hyresgästernas Förening signs an agreement with Titania.
- 7 Oct FSH negotiation referred to an arbitrator – the association argues for no rent increase at all.
Stated negotiating volume – dwellings
FSH's stated scope corresponds to about 0.13 per cent of Hyresgästföreningen's, a difference of roughly 750 times. The figures are the organisations' own and describe their activities somewhat differently; they are not a verified market-share measurement.
The Swedish Property Federation's position
Fastighetsägarna objects to arrangements where the tenants' organisation's independence can be questioned (3 September) and welcomes more organisations provided that mandate, funding and governance are transparent (22 September). These demands appear to be directed only at small organisations. Fastighetsägarna's claims of sham negotiations or lack of independence have been publicly rebutted by FSH and Hyresbostadsägarna i Stockholm, which makes them contested party positions. In the sources reviewed, Fastighetsägarna has not expressed similar views regarding HUS in Uppsala, where Hyresgästföreningen is operationally responsible for the organisation's negotiations, or regarding Organisation av hyresgäster, whose representatives simultaneously run a commercial company.
Analysis
The report's 99.9% for Hyresgästföreningen is the share of occurrences in the register data, not a market share. Challengers with a few thousand dwellings in total generated some forty publications in the trade press during 2026.
One organisation has a national members' magazine – the others communicate through their own websites and social media
Own media and communication channels per organisation, verified in October 2026
| Organisation | Verified own channel | Social media | Editorial publication |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hyresgästföreningen | Hem & Hyra (national members' magazine and news site); locally Hyrespressen; own website and press room | Yes | Yes – Hem & Hyra and local publications |
| Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster (FSH) | Website with news, press releases and rebuttals | No | |
| Hyresgästernas Förening | Website with news section | Not verified | No |
| Djurgårdens hyresgästförening | Website with news, notice board and minutes | Not verified | No |
| Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening (RHI) | Website with information and archive | No | |
| Stockholms Studenthyresgästers Förening (SSF) | Website with calendar, documents and member pages | Not verified | No |
| Hyresgästföreningen Uppsala Studentbostäder (HUS) | studenthus.nu with member information and statements (operations via Hyresgästföreningen since 2016) | No | |
| Hyresrätt Stockholm | Own information website | Not verified | No |
| Göteborgs Boendeförening | Current own channel not verified | Facebook page | No |
| Organisation av hyresgäster | Own organisational channel not verified (Urban Rights Sweden AB has a website) | Not verified | No |
| Hyresgästföreningen Kristinelundsvägen 2-24 | Own organisational channel not verified | Not verified | No |
An own editorial publication is distinguished here from the organisation's website, press releases and social media. No comparable reach measurement has been made; that a channel has not been verified does not mean it does not exist. Sources: the organisations' websites, hemhyra.se, hyrespressen.se, LinkedIn.
Reflection
There is a large difference in publishing capacity. Hyresgästföreningen has access to Hem & Hyra, an established national members' magazine and news site with its own editorial staff and responsible publisher, as well as local members' magazines such as Hyrespressen. The smaller organisations' verified channels consist of association websites with news, minutes and member information and, in some cases, social media.
Hem & Hyra is Hyresgästföreningen's members' magazine and describes its journalism as independent. Four of the eight Hem & Hyra articles on the previous page scrutinise FSH's negotiating mandate in Rågsved.
Overall, the survey describes a difference in verified publishing infrastructure, not which channels account for the largest share of each organisation's reach.
Gothenburg and Stockholm account for 59% of cases – Jönköping is third largest, ahead of Umeå and Linköping
Cases with a tenants' organisation as a party, per Rent Tribunal (unique case numbers, full extract)
New cases in 2025 (latest full year), per Rent Tribunal
| Rent Tribunal | Cases | Records | Respondent | 2024 | 2025 | 2026* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gothenburg | 5 214 | 5 216 | 91% | 2 264 | 1 806 | 109 |
| Stockholm | 3 872 | 3 885 | 93% | 1 334 | 1 581 | 228 |
| Jönköping | 1 803 | 1 803 | 97% | 885 | 836 | 52 |
| Umeå | 1 433 | 1 529 | 71% | 791 | 215 | 2 |
| Linköping | 1 274 | 1 357 | 90% | 792 | 416 | 16 |
| Västerås | 719 | 796 | 92% | 300 | 364 | 3 |
| Malmö | 633 | 680 | 58% | 271 | 82 | 62 |
| Sundsvall | 431 | 432 | 55% | 233 | 73 | 7 |
| Total | 15 379 | 15 698 | 88% | 6 870 | 5 373 | 479 |
Cases are counted as unique case numbers per tribunal. Party records are rows in the extract; a case may have several records when an organisation appears with several regional units or roles. Year refers to the case number's year suffix; *2026 up to 30 September 2026. Years before 2023 are incomplete owing to records disposal, see page 12.
New cases increased 3.6-fold in 2024 and remain at a new level – a consequence of the arbitrator proceedings
New cases per year (case number year suffix) and Rent Tribunal
| Rent Tribunal | up to 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026* | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gothenburg | 248 | 787 | 2 264 | 1 806 | 109 | 5 214 |
| Stockholm | 81 | 648 | 1 334 | 1 581 | 228 | 3 872 |
| Jönköping | 14 | 16 | 885 | 836 | 52 | 1 803 |
| Umeå | 69 | 356 | 791 | 215 | 2 | 1 433 |
| Linköping | 30 | 20 | 792 | 416 | 16 | 1 274 |
| Västerås | 42 | 10 | 300 | 364 | 3 | 719 |
| Malmö | 160 | 58 | 271 | 82 | 62 | 633 |
| Sundsvall | 105 | 13 | 233 | 73 | 7 | 431 |
| Total | 749 | 1 908 | 6 870 | 5 373 | 479 | 15 379 |
What happened in 2023–2024?
On 1 January 2023 the Act (2022:1657) on dispute resolution within certain collective rent negotiations entered into force. When the annual rent negotiations have not resulted in an agreement, either party to the agreement on collective bargaining procedure (in practice the property owner side) may ask the Rent Tribunal to appoint a special arbitrator. This presupposes that the agreement on collective bargaining procedure provides for such a possibility. The 2023/2024 negotiating round was the first in which the procedure was used at scale – coordinated by Fastighetsägarna.
The effect is visible in the number of registered cases: 1 908 new cases in 2023, 6 870 in 2024 and 5 373 in 2025. Before 2023 the extracts contain a total of 749 cases with a tenants' organisation as a party (2016–2022), reflecting both a lower case volume and records disposal.
Developments after 2025 diverge
The total number of cases after 2025 shows opposite tendencies across the country's Rent Tribunals. Umeå (791 → 215), Malmö (271 → 82) and Sundsvall (233 → 73) fell by around 70 per cent, while Stockholm and Västerås rose. H. Wac's assessment is that 2024 is characterised by a first-time effect, with many landlords testing the new procedure, and that in 2025 the parties in the north and south more often reached agreements without arbitrator review to the same extent as in previous years. Nor can the property owners' coordinated strategy be disregarded. Most surprising is that the number of cases has been rather low, above all in Stockholm and Gothenburg, during 2026 even though the regional property owners' organisations in those cities applied for the appointment of an arbitrator as early as the beginning of August 2026. The statistics suggest that the number of private property owners joining Fastighetsägarna's proceedings was substantially lower than in previous years, at least in the first round.
2026 refers to cases registered up to the extract date (September 2026).
83% of cases concerned the appointment of a special arbitrator
Distribution of case type (“Saken”) per Rent Tribunal – Malmö, Linköping, Västerås and Umeå
| Case type (“Saken”) | Umeå | Linköping | Västerås | Malmö | Total | Share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appointment of special arbitrator | 1 295 | 1 217 | 721 | 382 | 3 615 | 82.9% |
| Agreement on collective bargaining procedure (right to/extension) | 128 | 126 | 26 | 230 | 510 | 11.7% |
| Mediation | 80 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 92 | 2.1% |
| Damages under the Rent Collective Bargaining Act | 16 | 1 | 6 | 50 | 73 | 1.7% |
| Intervention in management / Housing Management Act | 7 | 4 | 9 | 9 | 29 | 0.7% |
| Negotiation agreement (review/extension) | – | 4 | 22 | – | 26 | 0.6% |
| Rent terms / repayment | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 9 | 0.2% |
| Remedial order | – | 2 | – | – | 2 | 0.0% |
| Extension of agreement on collective bargaining procedure | 1 | – | – | – | 1 | 0.0% |
| Extension of lease | – | – | 1 | – | 1 | 0.0% |
| Notification from administrator | – | – | – | 1 | 1 | 0.0% |
| Waiver of security of tenure, commercial premises | – | – | – | 1 | 1 | 0.0% |
Three case families
- Special arbitrator (3 615 records, 83%). Application under Act (2022:1657) when the collective negotiation on the annual rent adjustment has broken down. The tenants' organisation is in practice always the respondent.
- Agreement on collective bargaining procedure (510 records, 12%). Right to, or extension of, an agreement on collective bargaining procedure under the Rent Collective Bargaining Act. Here the organisation is applicant and the landlord respondent – the case type in which the local associations also appear.
- Other (235 records). mediation (92), damages under the Rent Collective Bargaining Act (73), intervention in management / Housing Management Act (29), negotiation agreement (review/extension) (26), rent terms / repayment (9), remedial order (2), extension of agreement on collective bargaining procedure (1), extension of lease (1).
The tenants' organisation is respondent in 88% of party records – but in Sundsvall and Malmö it is applicant in more than four out of ten
The organisation's role in the case, share of party records per Rent Tribunal
Role by case type where the case type is known
| Case type (Malmö, Linköping, Västerås, Umeå) | Organisation applicant | Organisation respondent | Share respondent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Appointment of special arbitrator | 309 | 3 306 | 91% |
| Agreement on collective bargaining procedure (right to/extension) | 493 | 17 | 3% |
| Mediation | 4 | 86 | 96% |
| Damages under the Rent Collective Bargaining Act | 63 | 3 | 5% |
Analysis
The distribution of roles mirrors the case types. Because arbitrator cases are initiated by the landlord side, the tenants' organisation becomes the defendant. The tenants' organisations have been applicants primarily at the Rent Tribunals in Sundsvall (44%) and Malmö (42%). In Malmö, Hyresgästföreningen has initiated proceedings concerning extension of agreements on collective bargaining procedure and damages under the Rent Collective Bargaining Act.
The smaller organisations' litigation patterns differ from one another: the regionally active associations and Organisation av hyresgäster appear only as applicants, FSH mainly as respondent.
The role external recipient (66 records) refers to cases where the organisation is not a party but receives documents, typically when an individual tenant is a party. Counsel (9 records) occurs marginally.
Fastighetsägarna's consultancy companies dominate as applicants
Applicant in cases where the tenants' organisation is respondent, share of party records
Fastighetsägarna GFR AB, MittNord AB, Syd AB and Stockholm AB appear as applicant “et al.”, on their own behalf and that of member companies. In Stockholm and Gothenburg a private landlord “et al.” is instead the applicant – joint applications from several landlords make up 94% and 97% of cases there respectively, against 73% in Malmö. The respondent is Hyresgästföreningen in 13 769 cases and FSH in 6.
Most frequent applicants against the tenants' organisations
Gothenburg
- Fastighetsägarna GFR AB187
- Lars Lewerth14
- Henry Myrgren8
Stockholm
- Fastighetsägarna Stockholm AB (in practice Fastighetsägarna Service Stockholm AB as counsel)517
- Förebyggare N & B Fastighets AB21
- Sollentunahem AB13
Jönköping
- Fastighetsägarna GFR AB1 482
- Fastighetsägarna Syd AB241
- Fastighetsägarna MittNord AB6
Umeå
- Fastighetsägarna MittNord AB266
- HSB Norr Fastigheter AB13
- Galären i Luleå AB13
Linköping
- Fastighetsägarna GFR AB711
- Fastighetsägarna MittNord AB169
- Viken Park AB6
Västerås
- Fastighetsägarna MittNord AB590
- CBK i ABC - län AB4
- Johan Veertee2
Malmö
- Fastighetsägarna Syd AB302
- Pinnån Fastighetsförvaltning AB4
- Willhem Fastigheter Adolfsberg AB2
Sundsvall
- Fastighetsägarna MittNord AB54
- Bernt Carlsson16
- Sundsvalls Bostäder AB5
When the tenants' organisations themselves go to the Rent Tribunal, it concerns the agreement on collective bargaining procedure – and the respondents are private landlords
Most frequent respondents when the organisation is applicant
Gothenburg
- Indian Förvaltning AB34
- Willhem Herrhagen AB15
- Botrygg Göteborg AB10
- Willhem Karlstad AB10
- Maria Lindqvist10
Stockholm
- Heba Fastighets AB41
- Willhem AB (publ)28
- Wonna I De Jong Fastigheter16
- Fahlin Förvaltning AB7
- Haprom AB7
Jönköping
- Rixos Fastigheter i Sverige AB5
- Lindström Property Småland AB3
- Sara Al-Kashwan2
- Gustav Mannerskantz2
- Brodderud Baggen AB1
Umeå
- Lundströms Fastigheter AB45
- Lulebo AB33
- Ingela Bäckman9
- Unobo Hem i Umeå AB9
- HSB Norr Fastigheter AB6
Linköping
- Viken Park AB38
- Botrygg Fastigheter HB19
- Jan Wagell8
- Hasselforshem AB6
- Dunungen Fastigheter AB6
Västerås
- Krylbostäder AB3
- Blötbergets Fastigheter AB3
- Grådö Entreprenad AB2
- Ecogreen Living i Eskilstuna 2 AB2
- GMK Enterprise AB1
Malmö
- Salana Österlen AB30
- Sölvegårds Fastigheter AB13
- Willhem Malmö AB12
- Duggal's Fastigheter KB7
- Hyreshem Malmö AB6
Sundsvall
- Unobo Panthuset Fastigheter AB11
- Bernt Carlsson5
- Hälsinge Kulturfastigheter5
- Sigvardssons Fastigheter AB5
- Tvättbjörnen Syd AB5
The pattern
The tenants' organisations are applicant in 1 848 party records (12%). In tribunals with a known case type, 56% of these concern the right to, or extension of, an agreement on collective bargaining procedure – the contractual instrument that gives the organisation negotiating rights over a building. The respondents are as a rule small and medium-sized private landlords and housing cooperatives that let out dwellings.
The same pattern also applies to the smaller organisations: Hyresgästföreningen Uppsala Studentbostäder applies for extension of agreements on collective bargaining procedure, while Hyresgästföreningen Kristinelundsvägen 2-24 and Organisation av hyresgäster bring proceedings against private property owners or first-hand tenants. Damages cases under the Rent Collective Bargaining Act occur mainly in Malmö (50 records).
Party records with the organisation as applicant, per Rent Tribunal
More than one tenants' organisation appears at three of eight tribunals – Stockholm, Västerås and Gothenburg – and there in 20 of 9 897 party records
| Organisation | Gothenburg | Stockholm | Jönköping | Umeå | Linköping | Västerås | Malmö | Sundsvall | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hyresgästföreningen | 5 215 | 3 871 | 1 803 | 1 529 | 1 357 | 791 | 680 | 432 | 15 678 |
| Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster (FSH) | – | 8 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 8 |
| Göteborgs Boendeförening | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening | – | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| Local tenants' associations with their own party designation | – | 1 | – | – | – | 5 | – | – | 6 |
| Organisation av hyresgäster | – | 4 | – | – | – | – | – | – | 4 |
Number of party records per organisation and Rent Tribunal.
Degree of plurality per Rent Tribunal
| Rent Tribunal | Organisations | Records beyond Hyresgästföreningen | Share | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gothenburg | 2 | 1 | 0.02% | Marginal |
| Stockholm | 5 | 14 | 0.36% | Marginal |
| Jönköping | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | None in the extract |
| Umeå | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | None in the extract |
| Linköping | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | None in the extract |
| Västerås | 2 | 5 | 0.63% | Marginal |
| Malmö | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | None in the extract |
| Sundsvall | 1 | 0 | 0.00% | None in the extract |
Analysis
Stockholm is the only tribunal where a nationwide challenger (FSH) appears, and the only one where an organisation brings proceedings against Hyresgästföreningen (H 2015-26). Here we also find Råckstahyresgästernas Intresseförening (an older, disposed-of case), the local organisation Hyresgästföreningen Kristinelundsvägen 2-24 and the 4 cases with Organisation av hyresgäster, which additionally acts through submissions in block-lease cases where it is not a party.
Västerås has plurality in a specific niche: student housing in Uppsala, where HUS negotiates and litigates over agreements on collective bargaining procedure. HUS's operations have, however, been run by Hyresgästföreningen since 2016, so the plurality is formal rather than operational.
Gothenburg has a single case with another organisation: Göteborgs Boendeförening's application for the right to an agreement on collective bargaining procedure against the City of Gothenburg (H 4794-19), which was rejected. The Gothenburg Rent Tribunal could only search on Hyresgästföreningen's registration number, so other organisations without a registration number may be absent from the register extract.
Jönköping, Umeå, Linköping, Malmö, Sundsvall show the presence of a single tenants' organisation: Hyresgästföreningen.
Conclusion: Hyresgästföreningen accounts for 99.9% of party records in the data. Plurality in the Rent Tribunal is mainly a Stockholm phenomenon, with isolated cases in Uppsala (formally) and Gothenburg.
The Rent Tribunals have become an arena for collective rent disputes – with, in practice, a single tenants' organisation on one side
The 2023 arbitrator rule has moved the negotiating conflict to the Rent Tribunal
From 1 908 new cases in 2023 to 6 870 in 2024. Arbitrator cases are now the dominant case type with a tenants' organisation as a party. For the tribunals this means a new, volume-driven case category; for the parties a predictable annual litigation cost.
The tenants' organisations primarily initiate cases on agreements on collective bargaining procedure
As applicants, the tenants' organisations use the Rent Tribunal mainly to secure or extend agreements on collective bargaining procedure against smaller landlords. This applies equally to Hyresgästföreningen and the local associations.
Plurality is a theoretical possibility, not a practical reality
The Rent Collective Bargaining Act is neutral as to organisations, but in the Rent Tribunals' case registers one organisation accounts for 99.9% of records. The six other organisations appear in 20 records, in Stockholm, Västerås and Gothenburg. Anyone wishing to assess competition on the tenant side needs to look outside the Rent Tribunals – or wait for the challengers to grow.
Organisational plurality has increased at the Stockholm Rent Tribunal in 2025
Of the 14 party records beyond Hyresgästföreningen in Stockholm, 12 were registered in 2025 or 2026: Föreningen för Sveriges Hyresgäster (8), Organisation av hyresgäster (3) and Hyresgästföreningen Kristinelundsvägen 2-24 (1). Before that only isolated cases occurred. The increase is small in absolute terms but breaks a pattern in which a single organisation was the sole party on the tenant side.
What H. Wac is watching
The 2026/2027 negotiating roundWhether arbitrator cases stabilise at the 2024–2025 level or the parties increasingly resolve failed negotiations without the Rent Tribunal's involvement.
Media scepticism towards pluralityHyresgästföreningen and Fastighetsägarna have both expressed scepticism towards new tenants' organisations. H. Wac monitors the debate's attitude to plurality and how it is affected by increased plurality at the Stockholm Rent Tribunal.
Scope and definitions
Scope
- The data covers all eight Rent Tribunals: Stockholm, Gothenburg, Malmö, Linköping, Jönköping, Västerås, Sundsvall and Umeå.
- The extracts reflect the register's content at the time of extraction (September 2026). Older cases are disposed of; the years before 2023 are therefore not comparable with later years.
- Register searches capture only registered actors. An organisation that files submissions in a case without party status – such as Organisation av hyresgäster in the block-lease cases H 9567-26 and H 10930-26 – does not appear in the extracts. This actor's legal footprint may therefore be larger.
- Case type is missing in the extracts from Stockholm, Gothenburg, Jönköping and Sundsvall. Conclusions on case type are based on Malmö, Linköping, Västerås and Umeå (4 360 records).
- The Linköping extract does not state the tribunal's name in the “Org. enhet” column; the attribution was established from the parties' geography (Linköping, Motala, Örebro etc.).
Definitions
- Tenants' organisation: an organisation of tenants within the meaning of the Rent Collective Bargaining Act, identified by actor name and, where present, registration number in the register.
- Party record: an actor that is a party to Rent Tribunal proceedings as applicant, respondent or intervening actor (one row in the case list). Case: unique case number per Rent Tribunal; linked cases are counted separately.
- Role: the register's role code for the actor – applicant, respondent, external recipient or counsel.
H. Wac Legal & Business Partner KB is an independent boutique firm focused on real estate law, rent setting and strategic advice.
The data consists of public information from the Rent Tribunals' case registers. The dataset can be ordered from H. Wac: info@hwac.se. The report may be cited with attribution: H. Wac Market Report No. 1/2026. The report does not constitute legal advice.