Tehran Rents Jump 70 to 100 Percent as Parliament Research Center Flags Fundamental Flaws in the Rent Cap Law

According to a report by Khabar Online published Saturday, August 8, 2026 (17 Mordad 1405), Tehran's rental housing market has seen rents rise 70 to 100 percent and deposits climb to several billion tomans this moving season, despite government support measures such as a rent increase cap, automatic lease renewals and housing deposit loans, a trend the report said has left many tenants unable to pursue their rights.

A fresh review by parliament's Research Center of Article 7 of the 2024 (1403) Law on Organizing the Land, Housing and Rent Market found the law suffers from fundamental design flaws: the rent cap only applies once annual inflation exceeds 30 percent and requires the Supreme Housing Council to find a "binding expediency," a standard the center said is neither clear nor measurable. The Research Center also said the law does not require landlords to renew leases, effectively neutralizing the cap since a unit can simply be re-let at market price, that enforcement depends on individual tenant complaints, and that it covers only 98 cities, leaving 835 other cities without protection. For the Iranian year 1405, automatic lease renewal with a 25 percent increase cap remains in force under the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development's policy.