Number of Dutch millionaires at record high

The number of millionaires in the Netherlands keeps growing. In 2016 the country counted 112 thousand millionaire households, the highest number since this annual study started in 2006, Statistics Netherlands reported on Tuesday.

A millionaire household is a household with a wealth of at least 1 million euros, excluding own home and mortgage. Since this study started in 2006, the number of millionaires in the Netherlands increased in every year except in 2009. In 2006 the Netherlands counted 72 thousand millionaire households. The proportion of millionaires in the total number of Dutch households increased from 1.2 percent in 2009 to 1.5 percent in 2016, according to the stats office.

Millionaires tend to be older than non-millionaires. In 2016 the main cost winners of millionaire households were on average 7.5 years older than those of other households. Less than 5 percent of Dutch millionaires are under the age of 40, more than three quarters are 50 years or older. Among non-millionaires, more than a quarter are under 40 and over half are 50 years or older. The average age of millionaires ranged from 57.9 years to 59.4 years between 2006 and 2016.

The main cost winners of millionaire households also tend to be better educated than those of other households. Almost half of millionaires have a higher education qualification, compared to a third of non-millionaires. 28 percent of the millionaires in 2016 had an academic degree, compared to 12 percent of non-millionaires.

Laren is the Dutch municipality with the largest proportion of millionaire households at nearly 11 percent, followed by Bloemendaal and Blaricum in a joint second place with 10 percent. Kerkrade has lowest proportion of millionaire households, with 0.3 percent.

Zeeland is the province with relatively the most millionaire households. 1.9 percent of private households in the province are worth at least 1 million euros. Utrecht comes in second with 1.7 percent, followed by Noord-Holland and Noord-Brabant with 1.6 percent. Limburg, Groningen and Flevoland counted relatively the least millionaire households in 2016 at around 1.1 percent.