The Netherlands could offset some of the shortage of housing in the short term by making better use of its current housing stock, according to a report by research group Platform31.

Some 40% of dwellings are currently lived in by one person, and the average amount of space is around 65 square metres each – almost 20 square metres more than in Germany or Belgium, the report points out.

The report highlights three areas where action can be taken: putting more people in the same space, more housing in the same space, and encouraging the elderly to move to smaller homes.

Living alone

Although some people choose to live alone in big apartments, there are ways to encourage a better use of space, Platform31’s Frank Wassenberg told broadcaster NOS. ‘Living with more people should be rewarded,’ he said. ‘The more people who can share the current space, the less you have to build.’

One way in which people could be encouraged to share is stop the financial penalties facing people who do. For example, banks and other mortgage providers can be difficult about allowing home owners to rent out a floor.

Tough rules on tenants rights may also deter people from renting a room or floor to another person, Platform31 said.

Social security laws are another factor, the researchers say. For example, two pensioners or two people claiming welfare benefits are given hundreds of euros less in state support if they share a home.

Friends contracts

Allowing young adults to share properties – using so-called Friends contracts after the popular series – would also reduce the pressure on starter homes, the researchers say.

The Hague is expanding its supply of rent-controlled and mid-market rental properties with a project to build 570 new homes in a residential area south of the city centre.

The De Schaloen development will be made up of 225 social housing units, with rents no higher than €730 per month, and 345 mid-market rentals. The homes will be built around communal gardens with underground car parking and the first will be ready for new tenants in 2023.

Locals already living in the Moerwijk-Oost area of The Hague were involved in drawing up the development plans, which involve the demolition of 220 outdated social housing units.

The population of The Hague is increasing by some 5,000 on an annual basis. ‘We are building 4,000 new homes a year, with a focus on affordability,’ housing chief Martijn Balster said. ‘This agreement is a major step towards realising our ambition. And we are investing not only in a large number of affordable homes, but in pleasant surroundings, with plenty of greenery and places to play.’

Source: https://haagsehoogbouw.nl/projecten/toekomst/de-schaloen/

The Holland Metropole region is establishing itself as a unique multi-city region with the ingredients to succeed as a major player globally, according to a new report by The Business of Cities group.

‘The fundamentals
of growth, knowledge and infrastructure are in place and the region developing its innovation edges,’ said the report, the third on the region by the research group.

However, as the Holland Metropole evolves and matures, it is starting to experience more of the dynamics that the very top regions in the world are living through, and this requires even more focus, attention and innovation, the report’s authors state.

Mapping opportunities

These will require better mapping of the opportunities in the region, so that it becomes more visible to external markets. And while central government is providing short-term investment to improve the transport infrastructure, there should be more cooperation on investment in the regional transport system and in managing congestion around the big cities.

Housing policies too require alignment and by working together, the five cities will be able to ensure that the
region as a whole continues to provide opportunity and choice, supported by housing policy reforms and incentives at the national level.

‘Holland Metropole’s special mix of innovation sectors is more likely to be successful if supported by co-investment in urban amenities, infrastructure and experience in more of the region’s high growth job locations,’ the report, published to coincide with Expo Real 2019, said. ‘Continuing support for SMEs to achieve catalytic scale will also be essential to catapult the region into the top class of innovation regions.’

Download the full report ‘Fulfilling Potential’

The Dutch developers association Neprom has welcomed the government’s plan to inject €2bn into stimulating the building of new homes but has warned that efforts need to be made to make sure that the sector is less sensitive to economic swings and that the money should not be used for short-term gains.

‘During the crisis, development at a lot of locations was stopped and investment opportunities for both the private and public sector were limited,’ Neprom chairwoman and BPD area development director Desirée Uitzetter said in a reaction.

‘We are still coping with the fallout from that, and since then no major new locations have been earmarked for development. This is why the sector has not been able to increase production to reach the necessary 75,000 new homes a year. So this effort from the government is very necessary.’

Neprom suggests spreading the €2bn over a 10 to 15-year period to ensure production is stable over a longer period. Developers say the money should be linked to regional investment agendas drawn up by local authorities, the private sector and social campaign groups.

‘Increasing the provision of new housing must be linked to investment in the necessary infrastructure, the energy transition, other measures connected to climate change and in strengthening the green and blue structures of cities and their surroundings,’ Ms Uitzetter said.

(Read the press release – Dutch)

Holland Metropole partner MRP has decided to focus on modular housing to head off the growing shortage of skilled labour in the construction sector, pointing out that 95% of Japanese housing is built using modular techniques.

‘There are so many advantages to it,’ chief executive Bart Meijer. ‘It is quicker, there is less nuisance for neighbours, we can meet energy efficiency targets easily and it is completely circular. If we want to keep meeting demand for housing, this is the direction we have to move in. Compare the cost and ease of installing 100 bathrooms in a factory with installing 100 bathrooms on site, for instance.’

In addition, he points out, using modular techniques allows developers to meet government requirements on social housing, because it is cheaper than traditional building methods. MRP hopes to have its first modular housing ready to move into in two years time.

‘Holland Metropole is becoming the multi-city metropolis to watch’

Greg Clark and Tim Moonen, Business of Cities

The past year has seen significant change in the number of city benchmarks and there are now well over 500 such studies produced worldwide.

And, according to a new report, Holland Metropole group is one of
the most frequently ranked
city regions worldwide, with more than 400 appearances
(in indexes and sub-indexes) across all five cities.

This, The Business of Cities report states, is partly due to the way each city borrows scale from the others, and partly due to its unique system of economic specialisation.

It is also particularly striking that across all benchmarks, Amsterdam has maintained its position as the third highest performing city region worldwide, overtaking Paris and now behind only London and New York.

Wider region

Over 40% of all benchmarks take into account the wider metropolitan and regional level of performance, reflecting the success of Amsterdam but also the appeal of the wider region.

Amsterdam may take first place in global studies such as the Healthiest Cities Index, Best Cities for Tech Enthusiasts and Qatar FCA Global Green Finance Index (for the depth of its green finance).

But what has really been important for Holland Metropole’s rise is that the region’s other constituent cities are also performing very well, The Business of Cities report states

App economy

For example, Utrecht, Rotterdam and Eindhoven all rank in the top 20 in Europe for the number of app economy jobs (ppi) and Eindhoven, Rotterdam and The Hague all rank in the top 25 global innovation hubs in EMEA. (Hickey & Associates).

Rotterdam, The Hague and Eindhoven also rank in the top 45 globally for talent competitiveness (INSEAD).

‘Success is enhancing the identity and distinctiveness of all five cities, within a single compelling package,’ say the report’s authors Greg Clark CBE and Tim Moonen. ‘Holland Metropole is becoming the multi-city metropolis to watch.’

Download the report ‘Fulfilling Potential’

Download our EXPO REAL edition of the Holland Metropole standbrochure.