"Green light" from the government for people buying a home for the first time

Finding affordable housing in the Netherlands in the middle price segment is not easy, especially in regions with high demand for real estate. The government sees a way out of the situation in targeted support for certain categories of the population with low incomes. In particular, the Minister of Housing and Spatial Planning Hugo de Jonge (Hugo de Jonge) presented to Parliament a program to support people who buy housing for the first time (“starters”).

Letter from Minister de Jonge to Parliament

In his letter to Parliament on February 7, 2023, Minister de Jonge lists the steps already taken to support people with low and middle incomes who want to purchase a home, and also informs about additional measures that will be implemented.

1. Of the 900 new apartments that is planned put into operation before 2030, 350 will be from the category of social housing.
2. From summer 2022 there is a trend to a decrease in housing prices and an increase in the number of offers on the real estate market, which increases the chances of a purchase for “starters”. However, mortgage interest rates are rising and the average home price is still higher than the maximum mortgage amount, and these are unfavorable circumstances.
3. Homebuyers for themselves in the Netherlands benefit to investors.
4. Increased limit national mortgage guarantee (Nationale Hypotheek Garantie, NHG) from 2023 to 405 euros.
5. For people under the age of 35 when buying a first home worth up to 440 euros tax on the purchase of housing (overdrachtsbelasting) is 0%. We remind you that this tax for other people who buy housing for themselves is 2%, and for investors - 10,4% of the property value.

government program

To increase the chances of home purchases by "starters", the government is planning to create a National Affordable Private Housing Fund, for which a budget of 40 million euros is allocated. Guidelines are offered for municipalities on how to facilitate the acquisition of housing by “starters”. According to Minister de Jonge, the stake in the government program will be placed on people with an income 1,5-2 times higher than the average, who want to buy a home. A commensurate contribution to the implementation of the program is expected from municipalities and developers.