Housing prices shoot up a record 15% with fewer homes on the market

The average sale price of homes rose to 385,000 euros in the first quarter of 2021, an increase of 15% compared to the first quarter of 2020. That is the largest such increase recorded in the past 20 years, the association of real estate agents NVM reported on their website.

In the four largest cities, prices rose by 14% to 16% compared to a year earlier, except in Amsterdam. The capital actually showed the lowest increase in the Netherlands, seven percent, because apartments there are already high and many buyers are looking for more space.

The price of a newly-built homes also jumped to an average of 433,000 euros in the first quarter of 2021, compared to 400,000 euros reported last year. That reflected an eight percent increase.

Additionally, the number of homes on the market has hit the lowest mark since the organization started collecting figures in 1995. Halfway through the first quarter of 2021, approximately 17,500 homes went on sale, 42% fewer versus a year ago.

“It is unprecedented what is happening on the housing market. Low interest rates, the enormous housing shortage and the stable socio-economic outlook are driving prices further upwards,” NVM chair Onno Hoes said. He added that the housing shortage must be an integral priority of the future government.

Compared to the last quarter of 2020, in a large part of the Northern Netherlands the average sales prices have risen sharply, sometimes by more than 20% as seen in the regions of Opsterland and Southwest Drenthe. The NVM said this is in line with the growing interest in rural areas, and it shows that more mobility is emerging in the housing market overall.