High rents are also a concern for Italians. While in Milan the average monthly rent reaches €1,820, in Sardinia the monthly rent has skyrocketed , with a 31% increase in Cagliari since 2019, while salaries have grown at a much slower rate over the same period. This is according to an analysis by the National Confederation of Craftsmen of data from the Revenue Agency's Real Estate Market Observatory and wage trends over the last six years. On the island, the regional capital is the area where this phenomenon is most pronounced: today, a standard 70-square-meter apartment costs an average of €800 per month, compared to just over €600 in 2019.

Cagliari thus ranks 18th in Italy for rent growth, with a 31.1% increase. Prices are certainly not comparable to those of other Italian cities, but the soaring costs are clearly being felt in Sardinians' pockets. Rent now accounts for 38.1% of the average net salary, leaving families with increasingly limited margins for other daily expenses.

In the rest of Sardinia, things are no better and the trend remains unchanged : in Sassari, rents have increased by 20.8%, reaching an average of 640 euros per month, while in Nuoro and Oristano the increases are nearly 20%, with rents of 550 and 545 euros per month, respectively. In Southern Sardinia, the average rent has risen to 540 euros, a 20% increase compared to 2019. In the rest of Italy , Milan and Florence lead the rankings for rent increases, with increases of 49.2% and 48.9%, respectively, compared to 2019. In the Lombardy capital, the average apartment now costs over 1,820 euros per month, with a salary ratio of 72.8%. In Florence, the situation is similar, with rents of 1,340 euros per month and a salary ratio of 62.3%. Bologna, Padua, Venice, and Naples follow with increases exceeding 40%, while Rome, despite high absolute values (€1,340/month), grew by 36.7%. In all cases, rent growth exceeded wage growth by at least 11-12 percentage points.

The situation, as highlighted by CNA Sardinia, has potential repercussions on the island's productive fabric and, in particular, on its associated micro and small businesses . "The housing problem isn't remote from our businesses: it's within them. Every time a craftsman can't hire the worker they need because they can't afford to pay rent, every time a qualified young person turns down a professional opportunity because the cost of housing wipes out their earnings—at that point, high rents have become a brake on the island's economic development. CNA Sardinia calls for concrete, structural interventions, not stopgap measures," explains Luigi Tomasi, President of CNA Sardinia. The looming risk is that Cagliari will become increasingly inaccessible for those who work there. "The gap between rents and wages is a snapshot of a system that is breaking down. We need a serious housing plan, concrete incentives to recover unused real estate, and policies that put the social sustainability of development at the center," adds Francesco Porcu, Regional Secretary of CNA Sardinia. Among the main demands are a structural Housing Plan to increase affordable housing, incentives for the redevelopment of unused properties and for owners to rent at controlled prices, as well as measures to encourage worker mobility.

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