The rent agreed in new contracts for private sector homes was up by an average of 9% in the final quarter of 2016, according to research by housing platform Pararius.

The increase, which includes unfurnished, semi-furnished and furnished properties,  took the average private sector rent to €14.34 per square metre per month, Pararius said.

Demand is strongest for homes costing between €711 – the limit for the rent-controlled sector – and €1,000, Pararius director Jasper de Groot said.

‘Some 43% of the people who are looking for a home via our platform are looking in this price category, but just one in four flats and houses meet this demand,’ De Groot said.

The biggest price rise was in Groningen, where average rents rose 14%. Prices remain highest in the province of Noord Holland, where rents now average nearly €20 a square metre.

In Amsterdam, the average rent for a new contracts was down slightly at €22 per square metre. Smaller homes of below 75 square metres, however, were almost 6% more expensive.

Amstelveen, Haarlem, Wassenaar and Utrecht complete the top five of most expensive places to rent.