Young Turks with tight budgets opt to rent items rather than buy

by Burak Akinci

ANKARA, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- In Türkiye's big cities, an increasing number of consumers opt to rent durable goods rather than buy them, as regularly rising prices erode their purchasing power, despite signs of cooling in rampant inflation rates.

Consumers mostly rent such items as home appliances, electronics, smartphones, computers, furniture, cars, and even clothing on a daily or monthly basis.

The procedure is quite simple: Customers can subscribe to an item for a month or quarter, as well as half a year or a whole year, with the option to keep renewing the subscription or to return the product, which costs less and allows for more flexibility than buying one.

The cost of renting a laptop, for example, is 2,000 Turkish liras (around 59 U.S. dollars) per month, while renting a smartphone costs 500 liras monthly. As for white goods and furniture, consumers need to pay a daily rent of about 100 liras and 200 liras, respectively.

"Renting is gaining popularity in countries battered by high inflation," Sinan Ventura, founding partner of Kiralabunu, an online platform for rental items, told Xinhua. He said the platform's users are primarily those with tight budgets.

Among the most in-demand rental items are smartphones, computers, tablets, and other electronic devices, said Ventura, noting that Tech-savvy consumers now prefer renting instead of buying upgraded products.

Although the country's annual inflation rate has declined from a peak of 75 percent in May, it still stood high at 52 percent in August, with prices increasing by 2.5 percent on average per month.

The persistent inflation, along with a weakened national currency over the past years, has led to a surge in goods prices, particularly the prices of electronic devices, and a significant reduction in citizens' purchasing power, contributing to the boost in the rental market.

"It's upsetting to see prices of durable goods rising regularly, therefore I prefer renting a laptop, a coffee machine, some furniture, and sometimes clothing items," Derya Uluc, a consumer from Ankara, told Xinhua.

Uluc is one of the many urban consumers aged 20-45 who consider that renting makes a better deal for many reasons, including affordability, or simply as a lifestyle.

"I believe renting instead of buying is a flexible, cost-effective, and more sustainable option to own a product that I need in my daily life," the young woman explained.