Netherlands has 390,000 too few homes

There is a shortage of 390,000 homes in the Netherlands. That amounts to about 5 percent of the total number of homes, according to the Atlas for municipalities 2022. On average, there are 105 candidates for every 100 available homes in the Netherlands.

Of the largest municipalities, the shortage is highest in Amstelveen and Amsterdam. These municipalities have about 150 candidates per 100 available homes. The housing shortage is also high in Hilversum, Utrecht, and Amersfoort, with 140 candidates for every 100 available homes.

According to Atlas Research, the agency that conducted this study, the housing shortage in the Netherlands is significantly higher than would appear from figures from the Ministry of Home Affairs and Kingdom Relations. The Ministry estimated the shortage at 279,000 homes. The difference lies in the measuring method. Atlas includes the housing desires of house hunters, gained from surveys, and also counts people under the age of 25 who are looking for accommodation but still live with their parents, for example.

The Ministry’s figures are determined by subtracting the number of available vacant homes (99,000) from the 378,000 households looking for or going to look for a home.

The least pressure on the housing market is on the edges of the Netherlands - Zeeland, Friesland, Groningen, the Achterhoek, and Zuid-Limburg. In those areas, there are well below 100 interested parties per 100 homes. “The fact that there is no massive vacancy in those regions is because people from the regions adjust their housing requirements and move to the ‘less popular regions,’” said a researcher from Atlas Research.

There are also regions where there is a threat of surplus housing. Almere, Lelystad, and Helmond are planning many more homes, adding over 10 percent of the current municipal housing stock. But that is more than currently needed. “Without major investments in the liveability and accessibility of such municipalities, the construction may cause future vacancy,” Atlas wrote.

The Ministry of Home Affairs wants to reduce the housing shortage to 2 percent by increasing the construction pace from the current 70,000 homes per year to over 100,000. “Even at that accelerated pace of construction, the housing task will not be achieved before 2030,” Atlas said.