Last year, 3,600 new-build homes were completed in Groningen and Drenthe. That is almost a quarter less than in 2022, when 4,700 houses were completed, according to new figures from Statistics Netherlands (CBS).
The decrease occurs in the majority of the northern municipalities. The decline was greatest in 2023 in Coevorden, Westerveld, Eemsdelta and Midden-Groningen. Compared to 2022, more than twice as many house keys could be handed over there.
There were also some municipalities where – against the trend – more houses were completed. This was particularly true for Meppel, Tynaarlo and Midden-Drenthe.
In the municipality of Groningen, which traditionally has the highest construction production in the North, the count remained at 1,156, while in 2022 it was still approximately 1,400. To reduce the housing shortage, the municipality wants to build an additional 1,500 homes every year. This was far from achieved in the past year.
‘There are always construction projects that are cancelled’
“That number is far too low,” agrees PvdA councilor Rik van Niejenhuis of spatial planning. “In recent years we have been committed to building 2,000 new homes. There are always construction projects that are cancelled, so we hope to actually realize 1,500.”
According to him, prospective buyers are ‘shy’ of buying a new home and project developers only want to build when 75 percent of the homes have been sold. “That’s how they keep each other in check. It has everything to do with the sharply increased mortgage interest rates and construction costs.”
He points out that Groningen is working hard on the preparation of, among other things, the new, large-scale construction sites Stadshavens and Suikerzijde. “Fortunately, mortgage interest rates have dropped again and I am receiving positive signals from developers. So I am confident that we will achieve the target numbers in a few years.”
Only two homes in Stadskanaal were completed in 2023
It could be even worse. Exactly two new-build homes were completed in Stadskanaal, one more than on Schiermonnikoog. In 2022, the construction of new homes in Stadskanaal had also virtually come to a standstill. Municipal spokesperson Rogier Verhagen says that the CBS figures are not correct. “As far as I know, Housing Corporation Lefier already delivered sixteen last year.”
The municipality of Stadskanaal hopes to have a total of 200 new homes built during this council period (which runs until 2026), by private individuals, developers and corporations. “For us, 2023 was the year of preparations. Ultimately, I expect that we will reach that 200 before the end of the lecture period. We are on schedule.”
Groningen is still just in the top ten
Nationally, the target number of 100,000 homes in 2023, as envisaged by outgoing Minister Hugo de Jonge (CDA) of Housing and Spatial Planning, has also not been achieved. More than 73 thousand new-build homes were completed last year. That is slightly less than the almost 75,000 in 2022, but is above the average of more than 61,000 over the past ten years.
In 2023, Amsterdam had the highest number of all municipalities with 4,500 new-build homes. That was 2,300 fewer than in 2022. Groningen is still in the top ten of municipalities where the most new houses were built last year.