The Veldhoven chip machine manufacturer ASML will help project developers build affordable houses in the Eindhoven region.
The company promises to partly cover losses and buy up houses if project developers do not sell them quickly enough.
The company announced the plans on Wednesday, writes the Financieele Dagblad (FD). ASML supports housebuilders with rental houses up to 1,100 euros per month and owner-occupied houses up to 375,000 euros.
The company will not build neighbourhoods itself, but supports project developers with construction plans that would otherwise not get off the ground. “Municipalities must also indicate that they think it is an important project. We are not going to support hobby projects,” project leader Frieda Rikkers told the newspaper.
Not for employees
The houses that are being built with the help of ASML are not for employees of the chip machine manufacturer. “They generally earn enough. But for people in the region with a lower middle income or below, a home has become virtually inaccessible. This is partly due to the growth of ASML and we want to take responsibility for that,” says Lucas van Grinsven, head of social policy at the chip machine maker.
Three projects
ASML already has three construction projects in mind that will receive support. The company is still keeping secret what these are, because the signatures have yet to be signed. This concerns more than five hundred homes in total.
Construction projects are not simply eligible for support from ASML, the company emphasizes. “Our support should not disrupt the market or increase developers’ profits,” says Rikkers.
Source: Studio040
For Eindhoven News: Lila Mehrez
