Make it easier for first-time buyers to buy flexible, temporary housing: NHG

Over a third of young home seekers are interested in buying a flexible home on land with a temporary residential designation, but financing options for these temporary homes are often non-existent. That needs to change, said the National Mortgage Guarantee (NHG), the organization committed to responsible housing financing.

The majority of home seekers between the ages of 20 and 34, mostly first-time buyers, are frustrated because of the lack of affordable housing, the NHG said. Almost half have been looking for a suitable home for over six months.

Flexible homes on temporary land can be a solution for this group. They can be built faster and cheaper, creating more affordable homes for sale in the short term. These homes cost an average of 180,000 euros, compared to the average regular home’s 450,000 euros. Flexible homes are prefabricated and often smaller than regular homes, but the main reason for the price difference is that they’re placed on land that is only available for a limited time.

Over a third of young home seekers are interested in purchasing such a home, mainly because of the lower monthly costs. They also consider it an opportunity to enter the owner-occupied market. The conditions they set for this purchase are that they’ll be able to sell the home again a few years later without ending up in debt and that the home is in a good location with amenities in the area. Over half would like to live there for 10 years, and about 20 percent would be happy with five years.

Flexible homes are currently mainly used as rental homes, often offered by housing corporations. “The purchase sector is lagging behind due to the uncertainties that this new form of housing entails. Financing flexible homes on temporary land is currently almost impossible,” the NHG said.

The NHG, working with the Ministry and Spatial Planning, lenders, housing corporations, and municipalities, has launched an investigation into how it can reduce these uncertainties by using the NHG guarantee. “The aim is to start a pilot with one or two municipalities at the end of this year or early next year.”