Finland's housing market is in a boom-bust cycle, reports Helsingin Sanomat.
The paper suggests that aggressive use of housing-company loans made expensive new apartments appear artificially affordable, encouraging households to take on leverage that was mispriced.
To illustrate the point, HS explains that the selling price might have been 120,000 euros, while the debt-free price was 400,000. This means the apartment carried a 280,000-euro housing-company loan.
The paper blames a decade of ultra-low interest rates, expanded student housing benefits and a surge in amateur buy-to-let investing. Developers responded with oversupply, particularly with small, low-quality units optimised for investor returns.
Economists now argue that recovery will be slow unless policy addresses structural distortions, including the use of housing-company loans in new construction.
Without reforms, according to HS, the same boom-bust cycle could re-emerge later in the decade as credit conditions ease and collective memory fades.
All Points North's latest episode asks whether Finland's housing market is finally stirring.
Listen to the episode via this embedded player, on Yle Areena, via Apple, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Remote office drama
Dreaming of more remote work? Start working for a state agency, urges Hufvudstadsbladet.
Doing the majority of workdays remotely is not at all uncommon for state-employed office workers, according to HBL's survey.
Several Finnish government agencies now offer extensive opportunities for offsite work. Many require employees to be present at the office only one day a week, or even just one day a month.
Last week, news emerged of plans to tighten remote-working policies at government offices, upsetting civil servants.
These included staff members at benefits agency Kela, who expressed dismay after learning they would be required to come into the office once a week.
Finland freezes
This week will be cold, and people in southern and central parts of Finland will get their first real taste of winter, according to Ilta-Sanomat.
Lapland has already looked wintry for some time. Meteorologists recorded this late autumn's cold record on Sunday at –28.3 degrees Celsius, in Lapland's Savukoski municipality.
On Monday, scattered showers are expected, mostly in the form of rain in the south. Temperatures in southern and central Finland will generally range from –2 to 3 degrees Celsius, while in large parts of Lapland temperatures will be between –10 and –20 degrees.
Snowfall is expected on both Tuesday and Wednesday. Almost all of Finland is forecast to be below freezing, with only southeastern Finland possibly staying around the zero mark.
