Affordable Housing Shortage
The Hague’s rental market has been facing an affordable housing shortage over the past several years. During my research, local housing sources explained that the rental market is used primarily by expatriates and lower-income individuals. Fewer expatriates are arriving now, and many existing tenants are extending their leases.
The pandemic caused many companies to make cutbacks, resulting in lower budgets for renters, further exacerbating the strain on the affordable housing supply. Many vacant rental properties are more expensive than the average renter can afford.
Affordable Housing Permits
The Hague’s government began implementing affordable housing permits in July 2019. The permits prevent individuals with high salaries from renting out cheaper apartments. Our housing sources in The Hague commended the regulation, commenting that the governments intervention was much needed. Before this rule was in place, it was common for renters to seek out property far below their budgets in an effort to save money. While it may be convenient for some to save money, it leaves lower income individuals in a precarious situation since they are often left with no housing options to choose from.
The affordable housing permits seem to be successful in addressing The Hague’s current housing distribution problem. However, it is evident that more affordable housing needs to be added to the market in order to meet the demand for cost-efficient options.
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On-site Insight:
This post is part of AIRINC's On-site Insight series. On-site Insight provides readers with an exclusive “behind-the-surveys” perspective of new and existing expatriate locations based on commentary and photos from our global research team. Included is information on general living conditions as well as changing costs for both Goods & Services and Housing & Utilities, along with much, much more.
Q.4 2020 AIRINC Global Petrol Price Tracker
