The cost of renting a home in the non-rent-controlled sector in Amsterdam has soared 8.4% over the past year, according to rental housing platform Pararius.

In the fourth quarter of last year, tenants were paying a monthly rent averaging €20.18 per square metre in the capital, Pararius said. In the Netherlands as a whole, free sector rents were up 1.3% at €12.49 per square metre.

Pararius director Jasper de Groot says the shortage of affordable homes to buy is behind the sharp rise in free sector rents.

In addition, there are not enough rental properties costing around €800 a month, De Groot says. This means landlords can easily ask over €1,000 a month for a flat which only just misses the rent-controlled sector definition.

In the Netherlands, rents are calculated according to the number of points a property has. Properties with rents set at over €700 are free sector.