Property owners stop new tenant nominations amidst rising housing shortage

Large property owners like Vesteda, Bouwinvest, and Heimstaden no longer accept nominations for new tenants from old tenants when they move. According to the property owners, old tenants often ask new tenants to take over the floor and curtains for exorbitant amounts in exchange for a nomination. They want to prevent private sector rental properties from going to the highest bidder, NOS reports.

According to Vesteda, which owns over 27,000 homes throughout the Netherlands, the nomination was until recently a win-win arrangement. The company did not have to find new tenants, and the old and new tenants could make agreements together about the takeover items. "But with the increasing shortage on the housing market, we received more and more complaints," a spokesperson said to NOS.

"Firstly, about homes that did not come online. There were also more and more signals that the requested takeover costs were not in proportion with the value of the items," the Vesteda spokesperson said. "For example, a moving tenant asked via social media for a takeover some of 11,000 euros for a laminate floor and some second-hand furniture. We then started to keep a close eye on social media and saw that our homes were being offered at high prices."

Vesteda, therefore, stopped accepting nominations for new tenants for homes with a rent below 1,400 euros because they are the most popular. The company hopes that this will make the distribution of homes fairer so that more people have an equal chance to get an affordable rental.

Bouwinvest stopped accepting nominations for rentals below 1,200 euros in 2020 for the same reasons. "We also saw the excesses in the transfer of homes in that segment. These are situations that you as landlord want to avoid," a spokesperson said to the broadcaster. "In addition, we want home hunters to have an equal chance."

Heimstaden said it hadn't received any complaints so far. "That does not alter the fact that we should take the signals from Vesteda seriously," a spokesperson said. "We have therefore decided to stop accepting tenant nominations for all our homes."

VB&T Vastgoedmanagement also stopped taking tenant nominations for certain popular buildings and areas. "We noticed that tenants became interested in getting a certain person into the home," spokesperson Eric Prevoo said to NOS. "They insisted that it had to be that person. It led to irritation, friction, and undesirable practices." VB&T still encourages item transfers. "In fact, that's our preference because it is a shame to remove good floors," Prevoo said. "But we now propose the candidate. They can then consult with the sitting tenant. That does lead to acceptable prices."