Overheating in the housing market is spreading to medium-sized cities such as Haarlem, Zwolle and Eindhoven, mortgage advisory group De Hypotheker said on Tuesday.

‘The number of affordable properties on the market in these cities is falling, and potential buyers are being left empty handed,’ the company said in a press statement.

In the third quarter of this year, the number of housing transaction in Haarlem plunged by 31%, in Leeuwarden and Zwolle by 23% and in Eindhoven by nearly 21%.

The government may be encouraging building firms to step up production of new homes, but the average price of a newbuild house has now reached €387,000, way beyond the reach of many first time buyers, the company said.

The nitrogen court ruling which has led to some projects being halted is also having an impact. The government has a target of 75,000 new homes a year.

‘We are urging the cabinet to come up with short-term solutions for the housing market because the impact of this will be felt in two or three years,’ De Hypotheker chief executive Michel van den Akker said.