The outgoing cabinet expects that a total of around 90,000 homes will be added in the Netherlands this year. This is stated in the annual report State of Public Housing 2023, which was published on Friday. Also last year, 90,000 homes were created. However, this is less than desired for two years in a row. At this pace, the government appears not to be able to achieve its goal of having 981,000 additional homes ready by 2030.
Due to higher construction prices and higher interest rates for investors, fewer homes have been created. According to the report, the housing shortage currently stands at 391,000 homes. Last summer, a housing market survey showed that the major shortage will most likely continue in the coming years. The researchers also concluded that the stock is only increasing to a limited extent, while the population is growing unexpectedly fast. This can be seen in the adjusted target that must be achieved by 2030: initially it was 900,000, which was later adjusted upwards due to high immigration figures in the Netherlands.
Outgoing Minister of Housing Hugo de Jonge (CDA) states that a lot of construction must be done quickly next year. “For 2024, the most important commitment remains to quickly build what has already been permitted and quickly license what can be built in the short term.” This not only concerns new-build houses, but also, for example, vacant office buildings that can be converted into apartments. But in the next two years, the outgoing cabinet expects a significant ‘construction dip’, De Jonge warned earlier this year, due to, among other things, a shortage of building land and high costs.