There are a bunch of other details about the Stockholm housing market that I think are relevant. I information is dated, as I did not end up moving there, but circa 2017, condos cost m around $300k, but were not expected to appreciate significantly, unlike the US housing market, so it wouldn't be an investment the same way a condo in SF would be. The other thing is that there's a queue for rentals, so you register that you want to rent in Stockholm, and then you get put on a list, and then wait two years for it to be your turn. which leads to the black market mentioned in the post - if you know somebody, you can skip the line. of course if you buy a place you don't have to wait in line, the rich get to buy their way in. so it's not just about price fixing, but also accessibility to find them in the first place. it's not the same free for all to just jump on craiglist and everyone rushes to apply at the showing.