Dutch Housing Market Shows Signs of Cooling After Rapid Growth
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Loading... - Bogdan Sidorov
- 30 Jan 2025
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The rapid increase in Dutch housing prices that began in mid-2023 is showing signs of tapering off, according to recent data from Makelaarsland, the Netherlands' largest online NVM real estate agency. Ivor Brevé, director of Makelaarsland, noted in an interview with the Telegraaf that while the housing market remains tight, there are indications of a slight cooling trend.
In the last quarter of 2024, Makelaarsland observed a "slight shift" in buyer and seller behavior. Notably, buyers are increasingly making offers below the asking prices. The agency reported that 34 percent of transactions in the final three months of the year involved bids below the asking price, up from 27 percent in the third quarter and 25 percent in the second quarter.
Brevé explained that until last summer, overbidding was common, with most properties attracting significant interest. However, the current landscape is changing, providing more opportunities for buyers. "While there are still properties selling quickly and well above the asking price, we are also seeing homes with significantly less interest," he stated.
Some sellers have expressed surprise at the moderate interest their properties are receiving, as they believed the market remained strongly in their favor. Brevé indicated that this shift has been noticeable for about three months.
The average number of viewings per property has also declined. In the fourth quarter of 2024, properties averaged 7.2 viewings, down from over nine in the previous three quarters. The most significant drop in interest was observed in November and December.
The slowdown in buyer interest has been particularly pronounced in major cities such as Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht, and The Hague. In the first three quarters of the year, these cities averaged nearly 13 viewings per property, but that figure has now fallen to just over seven. For the first time in years, buyer interest in urban areas is now comparable to that in the rest of the country.
Despite the cooling market, the average time to sell a home has remained relatively stable, hovering around six weeks since May.
The true state of housing prices in the fourth quarter will become clearer later this week when the NVM releases its latest sales figures. Recent data from the CBS indicated that prices for existing homes in November were 11.9 percent higher than a year earlier. However, it is important to note that CBS data, which is based on Land Registry records, typically lags three months behind the real-time sales transactions reported by real estate agencies.
As the market adjusts, stakeholders will be watching closely to see how these trends develop and what they mean for the future of the Dutch housing market.
