Tuesday, 7 October 2014 - 12:03
First-time home buyer subsidy running out
So many applications were made for a first time home buyer's starters loan, that the government's budget is running low.
This is evident from figures from Housing Stimulation fund Dutch municipalities (Stimuleringsfonds Volkshuisvesting Nederlandse gemeenten - SVN), who issue starter loans.
Thanks to the starter loan a home buyer can buy a more expensive home than is normally permitted on the basis of the rules of maximum mortgage. With a starters loan no interest or repayment needs to be paid in the first years.
According to the SVN more than 5 thousand households applied for the scheme in the first nine months of this year. This is already more than the 4 thousand starter loans that were issued throughout 2013.
Municipalities have begun to lobby the government to replenish the budget for starter loans. The government contributed 50 million euro to the residential accord in 2013. Municipalities contributed the same amount.
Should the government not renew the starter scheme, many municipalities are expected to stop their program as well. 300 municipalities in total offer starter loans.