Population Arrears in Payment for Housing and Utility Services in the First Half of 2020: a Familiar Track

Aleksandra Ya. Burdyak – Senior Researcher of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration (Moscow, Russia). E-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

In the first half of the year, the population’ arrears for housing and communal services amounted to 6.3% of the charges. Although it increased compared to 2017–2019, the current situation is similar to the first half of the year in 2013–2016, when the debt for housing and utility services was 6.1–6.6% of accrued payments. The organizational form of providing housing and utility services does not affect the share of unpaid debt: in the Russian Federation, on average, it is the same both for services provided through intermediary organizations and for services provided directly by resource-supplying organizations to the population.

According to the Person, Family, and Society survey (Spring 2020), during the past year 17% of respondents had debts for housing and utility services due to financial reasons. Late payment for housing and utility services is twice more likely than on average among single parents with children and in the first quintile group by income. Families with children are 1.5 times more likely to be in arrears. In contrast, a pensioner in family halves the likelihood of arrears for housing and utility services.

The article was written on the basis of the RANEPA state assignment research programme.

Key words: housing, payment for housing, population arrears for housing and utility services, regional analysis, pandemic time.