Government identifies 50 sites for accelerated housing programme

Housing minister Elanor Boekholt-O’Sullivan has drawn up a list of 50 locations where the Dutch government wants to speed up housebuilding to meet the target of 100,000 new homes a year.

The plan includes 26 sites near railway stations that are already well served by transport links and utilities, making them relatively easy to develop.

The first five locations have already been identified in Maastricht, Haarlem, Leeuwarden, Deventer and Weert, with another five due to be announced later this year. All 10 developments are supposed to be finished by 2040.

The cabinet is investing €7 billion over the next eight years in affordable homes and wants to scrap planning rules and building requirements that slow down the process.

Affordable homes are supposed to account for two-thirds of all new projects, with at least 30% going on social housing.

Around €3 billion of the funding will take the form of subsidies, while investors who build houses for the mid-rental sector will receive a payment for each unit they construct from 2029.

The government is anxious to retain private investors who have been selling rental flats in response to the Affordable Rent Act, which has tightened the rules used to calculate rent levels, and lingering uncertainty over the “box 3” tax on income from assets.

Local and regional subsidies

Local councils will be encouraged to buy land for housing, with the national government providing financial support to share the risk. The municipalities and provinces will also be able to hire 200 equivalent full-time staff to work on issuing permits, while a team of experts will tour the country using their specialist knowledge to revive projects that have become stuck in the system.

Analysts noted that some of the regulations would have the effect of pumping more money into existing plans. “That means that some building projects probably won’t go ahead because they’re not profitable,” Stefan Groot, housing market economist for Rabobank, told NRC.

Boekholt-O’Sullivan said: “I will continue with what works and reform what doesn’t. It is clear what has to happen, money is avaiable and there are enough building projects.

“What matters now is moving from the drawing board to the foundations. The government can’t do it alone: we need builders, investors, local authorities and provinces to work with us.”