House price rises levelled off nationwide in the third quarter of the year and the number of sales fell compared with the same period in 2021, national statistics agency CBS said on Monday.

Although house prices were also up quarter on quarter, the average price fell by around €8,000 between August and September. The figures are the latest sign that the overheated Dutch housing market is cooling down and that buyers are becoming more cautious as mortgage interest rates rise.

Year on year house prices were up 11.9%, compared with the third quarter in 2021 but this is a marked drop on the second quarter, when an increase of 18.4% was recorded.

In total, 50,453 deals were sealed in Q3, down 6.4% on 2021. But in Amsterdam and Utrecht, more homes changed hands than the national average, the CBS said.

Earlier this month, estate agents association NVM said an average house sold for 5.8% less in the last financial quarter than between April and June.

The NVM’s figures differ from the CBS because the latter only includes deals which have been reported to the land registry and the NVM figures are based on its member agents.

Nevertheless, the NVM figures were the first solid indication that the Dutch property market is taking a downturn, after years of growth.