House prices rose sharply at the end of 2024, albeit less rapidly than in the past

The supply of homes on the Amsterdam housing market has increased considerably, in part due to the sale of vacant rental homes, according to the Amsterdam realtors association MVA. Despite the increased supply, the real estate agents in the capital warned of a continuing shortage on the housing market on Thursday.

A total of 2,070 homes were put on the market by MVA brokers during the fourth quarter of 2024. This reflects an increase of 54 percent compared to the same quarter a year earlier.

“It is clear that the housing supply has increased,” said MVA Chair Floris van der Peijl, attributing this with landlords, developers, and housing corporations selling off rental properties, especially vacant properties. “This is a direct result of the Affordable Rent Act, which has made it much less interesting for landlords to offer a property on the rental market.”

However, overbidding is still common on the Amsterdam market. Nearly four out of every five homes sold in the capital last quarter closed above the asking price. This despite the fact that there was an increased supply due to selling off rental market homes, and the construction of new homes, said Van der Peijl.

In total, MVA brokers sold 2,919 homes in the fourth quarter, 27 percent more than in the same period a year earlier. That is more than in “any quarter in recent years,” the MVA chair said. This points to a high level of consumer confidence, he believes.

Although the increased consumer confidence and the rising supply are signs of a “healthy housing market,” the reality is “more stubborn,” partly due to the overbidding, he said. “The tightness on the housing market remains unabated.”

The quarterly figures from the MVA were released at the same time as those of the national realtor association NVM. Nationally, there was also a much greater supply of homes last quarter, that organization said.

House prices in the Netherlands also rose sharply again, by 11.5 percent. In Amsterdam, the median selling price of a home actually fell slightly in the fourth quarter, to 707,572 euros.

This remained far above the national average, of 483,000 euros. Amsterdam was one of 11 of the 342 municipalities where an existing owner-occupied home cost more than 700,000 euros on average.

Amsterdam also represented about 7 percent of the homes put on the market across the country in October, November and December. A total of 43,000 homes were sold in the Netherlands during the last quarter of the year, about 20 percent more than a year earlier. The NVM cited rising wages and falling mortgage rates as driving the decision to make a purchase, and also noted more landlords put rental properties on the market.