The number of houses purchased in Southeast Brabant is at its lowest level since 2015.
In the third quarter of 2021, thirty per cent fewer properties were sold compared to the same period in 2020. A total of 1440 properties were sold. This is according to NVM, an association of estate agents.
There are also fewer and fewer properties for sale in the region. There are currently around 800 properties for sale, around half the figure from last year. The NVM reports that due to the short supply, there is considerable overbidding in the region. The average sale price is now €420,000, a 13 per cent increase compared to last year. 75 per cent of properties sold were secured through overbidding.
Debbie Mels, Chairwoman of NVM, sees little room for optimism. ‘The market will mostly likely continue to slump,’ she says. ‘The problem is that there are too few properties available. New properties are being built, but they are mostly apartments, whereas many people want a house with a garden.’
Mels continues, ‘It is clear that something needs to change. It is common nowadays that someone puts their house up for sale for €450,000 and gets €500,000 for it. Then the neighbours put their house up for sale for €500,000 and get €530,000 for it. This trend has to stop, and that will only happen when more properties become available and the prices fall.’
Investors withdrawing
Despite the gloomy statistics, Mels shares one piece of good news: ‘We are seeing that there are 25 per cent fewer investors in the market nowadays. For people trying to get onto the property ladder, this is good news,’ she says. Investors often focus on starter homes. But because the tax has been increased to 8 per cent for investors, and lowered to 0 per cent for first-time buyers, many investors are withdrawing.
All in all, Mels says that despite the shortage of houses, the opportunities for first-time buyers have improved.
Source: Studio040
Translation: Rachael Vickerman
