Matthijs Korevaar, Associate Professor in the section Finance at Erasmus School of Economics, has given a look at the new Affordable Rent Act. He did so in a Trouw article and in a BNR Nieuwsradio excerpt. Here, he mainly discusses the negative effects of the new legislation. Also, he was invited on EenVandaag to talk about the Affordable Rent Act on television.
The new law aimed at making rents cheaper is not as beneficial as people think. Private landlords are now more likely to sell their homes, which means there will be fewer rental properties available for those on lower incomes. This will put vulnerable house seekers at an additional disadvantage by a law that is trying to help them. This is Korevaar's warning, based on a new investigation into the Affordable Rent Act. The law pursues a noble goal, yet it has adverse side effects. Smaller private landlords are already selling their houses. According to outgoing minister De Jonge, this is not a bad thing, as there are also many house hunters in that sector who can now find housing. Korevaar disagrees, however, as tenants who rely on the free sector are now more likely to miss out on opportunities. There are certainly groups that enjoy the legislation as well, but the price is paid by lower-income households.
Another thing that has not been taken into account in outgoing minister de Jonge's calculations is that a property has a higher residential occupancy rate than that of a private investor. Therefore, if that property is sold and fewer people move in, the shortage increases. One solution is to make better use of the homes we have, for instance through house sharing.
