Ban on buy to let in Amsterdam for newly built properties
In a shocking move by the leadership of Amsterdam Council, there’s a proposal for a new policy to ban the buying of new property for buy to let in Amsterdam. Anyone buying a newly built property will have to live in it.
So if we buy a property we actually have to live in it?
Zelfwoonplicht
The so-called zelfwoonplicht has been introduced to protect the housing market against individuals and investment funds that buy properties and immediately put them on the rental market. According to the Dutch central bank, one in five homes sold in Amsterdam is owned by investment organisations. They have the funds to outbid private and first-time buyers and contribute to the excessive cost of renting homes in Amsterdam.
But I thought that Expats were to blame?
Incredibly, expats who are usually blamed for the state of the housing market in Amsterdam haven’t been mentioned in the proposal. As I’ve stated before, investment funds such as Blackstone and professional property investors such as Rappange and the cousin of the King, Prins Bernhard have been buying up property in Amsterdam and renting them out for years. This will at least put an end to this practice for nieuwbouw homes.
Will the new rule change anything?
If the new rule is implemented it will be interesting to see what if any effect it has on the current property market in Amsterdam. The reality is that there’s still a shortage of affordable property in Amsterdam but at least by preventing people from buying newly built homes purely for the sake of putting them on the private rental market, it might give first-time buyers a better chance of actually being able to successfully bid for properties.
No investment fund managers were hurt during the writing of this post.
Expat Housing Seminar
If you’re an expat who is thinking about annoying the locals by buying a property, visit the Expat Housing Seminar on January 21st at the House of Watt in Amsterdam at 18.30. You can sign up for this free event here.
