Living/housing

After a strong start to the year, rising mortgage rates are slowing the housing market. ABN AMRO now expects modest price increases this year and next, while income growth and a constrained supply keep prices from falling. Regional price gaps are narrowing and structural bottlenecks such as an overloaded power grid and reduced investor interest complicate the outlook.

Funda will introduce new paid packages for home sellers and roll out features that make browsing properties easier, while giving sellers more control over how their listings appear.

Nearly 800 letterboxes were removed across the Netherlands last year, while postal delivery reliability again failed to meet legal standards, according to the ACM’s annual postal and parcel market monitor. On the other hand, parcel lockers nearly doubled, now approaching the number of letterboxes nationwide.

Gasunie has raised concerns about slow progress in refilling Dutch gas reserves ahead of winter. Low storage levels and rising prices are adding pressure, while decisions on a strategic reserve are still pending. The government says measures are under way, but acknowledges more may be needed.

Twenty-seven asylum seekers spent the night at an emergency shelter in Gieten as pressure on the overcrowded Ter Apel registration centre continues. Several Dutch municipalities are providing temporary accommodation while authorities search for a long-term solution.

VNO-NCW chair Coen van Oostrom hopes the Netherlands can avoid cuts to social security and instead seek broader solutions. His comments come after unions ended talks with the government and announced strikes over proposed changes to benefits and pensions.

More measures are needed to fix a €19.4 billion funding shortfall facing housing associations, as current government plans only solve the crisis on paper, Housing Minister Elanor Boekholt-O'Sullivan has warned. While the coalition's proposals—including annual funding boosts, higher rents for high earners, and relaxed European rules—theoretically turn the deficit into a surplus, they fail to account for reality. The minister pointed out that the calculations ignore high interest rates driven by the war involving Iran and wrongly assume that wealthy associations will easily subsidise struggling ones, threatening the target of building 30,000 new homes a year and prompting the creation of a new financial advisory committee.

CPB research reveals that solar panel ownership in the Netherlands is still dominated by higher‑income households. Housing associations help lower‑income groups access solar energy, while private renters lag behind.