Efforts to encourage people with good incomes and who live in rent-controlled property to move are failing, according to research by Kantar TNS.

In total, 84% of tenants questioned by the market research bureau said that allowing landlords to put up their rent above inflation had no impact on their plans to move. Just 16% said the rent increase had prompted them to consider their options.

Most property in the Netherlands with a rent of below €710 is earmarked for people earning less than €36,135 a year. A small proportion can be rented to households with an income of between €36,135 and €40,349.

However, Dutch rental housing rules mean that landlords cannot evict tenants who earn more than the limit.

The researchers said one reason may people do not move is the lack of alternatives, particularly in the big cities. There is a shortage of affordable places to rent and they don’t earn enough to buy a property.

For the past four years, social housing landlords have been allowed to raise rents by up to 4% above the rate of inflation for high earners.

Around 30% of rent-controlled properties are lived in by people who technically earn too much, housing corporation umbrella group Aedes said last year.