Mortgages in Dutch suburbs skyrocket as buyers flee expensive cities

Homebuyers in the Netherlands are increasingly turning to the suburbs as home prices in the cities of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht and The Hague continue to rise, according to homeowners association Vereniging Eigen Huis. First time buyers can no longer afford buying in one of the large cities, AD reports.

Buyers unable to afford living in Amsterdam are turning to municipalities like Edam-Volendam and Haarlemmermeer, according to the newspaper. In Edam-Volendam the number of mortgages rose 21 percent last year. In the municipality of Zuidplas, near Rotterdam, 92 percent more mortgages were taken out in 2017 than in 2016. People wanting to live at least close to Utrecht are turning towards municipalities like De Bilt, where the number of mortgages increased by 63 percent. 

According to professor Peter Boelhouwer at TU Delft, one of the main problems is that too few new homes are being built. Currently between 40 thousand and 60 thousand new homes are built per year. "Instead of the 80 thousand needed. This means that the shortage of 200 thousand homes that already exists will increase further", he said to the newspaper. 

Vereniging Eigen Huise is deeply concerned about the large shortage of new homes, price developments and the dichotomy in the housing market. First time buyers with no savings or wealthy parents hardly have a chance of affording a home, according to the association. "Because of the ever rising house prices, they no loner stand a chance", spokesperson Hans Andre de La Porte said to the newspaper. "A large group can no longer get a house at all."