Radio | News week in plain Finnish | Sunday 13.7.2025

Summer cottage expenses

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The topic of the week this time is the costs of a summer cottage.

Finns spend a lot of time at their cottages.

The owner of the cottage spends money on things like food, renovations, and various payments.

Let’s talk more about it now.

Food and repairing the cabin cost money

A summer cottage brings many different expenses to the cottage owner.

Cottage owners have reported on their expenses in a survey conducted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. 5,000 cottage owners responded to the survey.

Last year, an average of around 7,000 euros was spent on a summer cottage.

The most money is spent on food and repairing the cottage. In addition, money is spent on electricity bills and property taxes.

Many cottage owners also pay for road maintenance, clean water, and garbage removal.

Reducing expenses

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Pete Mäki in the yard of his cottage in Puumala. Photo: Petri Vironen/Yle

Owning a cottage can be expensive.

Pete Mäki owns a cottage in Puumala, South Savo. Mäki spends about 10,000 euros a year on his summer cottage.

Mäki says that the most money is spent on electricity, food and property taxes. Last fall, the cottage had its roof renovated.

However, many cottage owners are spending less money than before. Often the reason is rising prices.

Less money is being spent on things like repairing and building a cottage. The repair allowance is about 1,000 euros less than it was 4 years ago.

Revenue for the municipality and shops

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Summer cottage in Kannonkoski. Photo: Niko Mannonen / Yle

There are about half a million cottages in Finland. People spend time in cottages, especially in the summer.

Cottage owners bring a lot of money to the municipality where the cottage is located. It is also good for the cottage community’s grocery stores when people come to shop.

For example, in Southwest Finland, sales at the Taivassalo K-Market increase as summer begins. Shopkeeper Timo Vormisto says that the store’s sales double.

The shop sells steaks, sausages and ice cream to the cottagers.

Repetition

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Summer cottage’s lakeside sauna. Photo: Antti Tuuha

The topic of the week in the news was the costs of a summer cottage.

A cottage owner spends an average of around 7,000 euros a year. The money is spent on things like food, cottage renovations, and property taxes.

However, many summer cottage owners spend less money than before.