House prices in The Hague soared 24% over the past 12 months, as expats start buying rather than renting homes, the Dutch estate agents’ association NVM said on Thursday in a new report on the housing market.

‘Supply in The Hague region is nowhere near enough to meet the demand,’ NVM director Ger Jaarsma said in a statement. NVM estate agents meet an increasing number of expats at house viewings and in central areas they account for 40% to 50% of visitors, the NVM said.

In addition, small-time investors have woken up to the housing potential in The Hague and are snapping up one in five homes in the city to rent out privately, the NVM says.

The price of the average Dutch home rose by 10% over the past year, while apartments were 16% more expensive, the NVM figures show.

In Rotterdam, by contrast, house prices are up 15% and in Amsterdam, where the market is seriously overheated, they rose by 13.5% over the year.