Rental supply in the unregulated sector continues to decline amid persistent demand

Monthly income of €5,200 needed for average rental property

Pararius Quarterly Rental Report Q4 2024

The number of available rental properties in the unregulated housing sector decreased by 40.4% in Q4 2024 compared to a year earlier, according to data analysis by housing platform Pararius. The average price per square metre for a rental property in the unregulated housing sector  rose by 7.7% in Q4 2024 year-on-year, amounting to an average monthly rent of €1,730. The pressure on the rental market remains immense: particularly in the price category up to €1,500, demand significantly exceeds supply.

Number of available properties

In Q4 2024, a total of 12,274 rental properties in the unregulated housing sector became available for new tenants across the Netherlands. This data is sourced from Pararius, Huurwoningen.nl, and other public data sources. This represents a 40.4% decrease compared to the same period in the previous year when 20,589 rental properties became available. Meanwhile, 12,979 properties were withdrawn, indicating they were no longer available for rent.

A rental property was online for an average of 18 days on Pararius in Q4 2024, four days shorter than the previous quarter when the average was 22 days. A year ago, the average was also 18 days.

Average number of responses to a rental property

In Q4 2024, an average of 42 responses were received per rental property listed on the unregulated housing market. This is slightly higher than in Q4 2023, when the average was 41 responses. This indicates that pressure on the rental market in the unregulated housing sector  remains significant. Pararius reported in December 2024 that this pressure is even greater in the mid-rental segment.¹ In this segment, encompassing properties with rents between €879.66 and €1,165.81 per month, an average of 84 responses were received per property in Q3 2024.

A rental property in the unregulated housing sector in Q4 2024 started from a rent of €1,157.95 per month, equivalent to 186 so-called WWS points. Properties with 187 WWS points or more fall under the unregulated housing sector in the Netherlands, also known as the private sector.

The largest imbalance is seen in the cheapest segment of the unregulated housing sector, which immediately follows the mid-rental segment and is often the only affordable option for many tenants. In Q4 2024, half of all responses submitted via Pararius to landlords (50.5%) were for properties in the €1,158 to €1,500 per month category, even though this category accounted for only 34% of the total housing supply on Pararius.

33.8% of all measured responses were attributed to properties priced between €1,500 and €2,000, representing 33% of the unregulated housing sector supply. For properties over €2,000 per month, 15.8% of responses corresponded to 33% of the supply.

Market scarcity

To provide insights into the rental market situation, Pararius has developed the "Pararius Tightness Indicator." This indicator measures the ratio between supply and demand in the Dutch rental market and combines key dynamic elements of the rental market: total housing supply, newly published properties, the average advertisement duration, and the average number of responses per property.

In Q4 2024, a landlord’s market was evident. The tightness indicator stood at 0.47, indicating that demand for rental properties greatly exceeds available supply. In Q3 2024, the tightness indicator was 0.74, also reflecting a landlord’s market. This results in rapid renting of available properties and continued pressure on rental prices.

The Dutch rental market is at a critical juncture, characterised by historically low supply, rising prices, and structural inaccessibility for large parts of the population. Jasper de Groot, CEO of Pararius, stated: “Since the fiscal reforms and implementation of the Affordable Rent Act on 1 July 2024, pressure on the rental market has further increased.² The unprecedented number of responses to affordable rental properties in the unregulated housing sector illustrates the heightened competition among tenants. The current climate underscores the urgency of revising government policy to alleviate pressure on the rental market swiftly. Private and institutional investors are willing to meet the high demand but are unable to do so due to unprofitable rent regulations, high fiscal pressures, and imposed affordability requirements for new builds. The most immediate and impactful measure that can be taken is removing the WOZ cap from the WWS. This can be implemented without parliamentary approval and would particularly curb sales of smaller rental properties in large cities, ensuring these properties become available for tenants once again.³ The drying up of rental supply has severe consequences for population mobility and housing market dynamics as a whole.”

Average rental price vs. required income 

In Q4 2024, the average rent for a rental property in the unregulated housing sector in the Netherlands was €1,730.34 per month.⁴ Landlords often require that a tenant’s gross monthly income be at least three times the rent.⁵ This means that in Q4 2024, a tenant needed a gross income of at least €5,191.03 to qualify for an average rental property in the unregulated housing sector.

The income requirement remains significantly higher than the 2024 median income – €3,666 gross per month, including holiday pay – and limits accessibility to the unregulated rental market. Rising average rents increase financial pressure on tenants, making it increasingly difficult for households to find suitable housing.

Pararius Rental Price Index (PHI)

Since Q3 2024, Pararius has included a rental price index in its reports. The Pararius Rental Price Index (PRI) measures the development of average rental prices in the unregulated housing sector and compares this to both the Consumer Price Index (CPI)⁶ and the Price Index for Existing Homes (PIEH)⁷. All indices use Q1 2021 as the base quarter (100). This approach aims to provide a transparent and comprehensive view of the Dutch rental market. Rental prices have risen faster than inflation in recent quarters. This can be explained by the fact that the increase in the weighted average price per square metre has been dampened by changes in the housing stock; larger properties with lower square metre prices have become more prevalent. If the unregulated housing sector threshold had not been raised, the square metre price might have exceeded inflation. Nevertheless, these increases are modest compared to the price developments and “frenzy” seen in the sales market.

Shift from rental to owner-occupied housing market

In Q4 2024, 1,838 properties shifted from the rental to the sales market (outflow) on the Pararius platform, an 83.4% increase compared to 1,002 properties in Q4 2023. These figures are based on properties listed for sale on Pararius, which accounts for one-third of the total housing supply in the Netherlands. The actual number of properties shifted to the sales market is considerably higher.

Conversely, the “inflow” of properties moving from the sales to the rental market declined. In Q4 2024, 403 properties moved from sales to rental, a 22.2% decrease compared to 518 properties in Q4 2023.

The percentage of sales listings originating from the rental market increased to 7.9% in the last quarter, compared to 5.3% in Q4 2023.

For several consecutive quarters, the housing market has shown a trend where private investors opt to sell vacant rental properties rather than re-letting them. The type of property sold is approximately 16 square metres smaller than the average size of properties still being rented; properties sold this quarter averaged 70 square metres, smaller than the overall rental average of 86 square metres.

Average square metre price per housing type

In Q4 2024, the average price per square metre for both apartments and single-family homes increased. New tenants paid 8.2% and 9.7% more, respectively, compared to the previous year. For an apartment, the average was €20.12 per square metre per month, and for a single-family home, it was €15.49 per square metre per month. Nationally, the average rent per square metre for a rental property in the unregulated housing sector rose to €19.06 per month, a 7.7% increase from Q4 2023.

Delivery forms in the Netherlands

Pararius distinguishes three delivery types: furnished⁸, upholstered⁹ and shell¹⁰. In Q4 2024, Shell homes represented 39.6% of the properties withdrawn from Pararius listings. New tenants paid an average of €18.56 per square metre per month for a shell property. Fully furnished properties accounted for 33.3% of the withdrawn listings, with new tenants paying €24.11 per square metre per month. Upholstered properties made up 27.1% of Q4 2024 withdrawn rental listings, costing an average of €21.70 per square metre per month.

Rental price development in Dutch cities 

Pararius also reports on rental price developments at the local level. This data pertains to locations where more than 30 rental properties in the unregulated housing sector were withdrawn in a quarter. The data shows that the average rent per square metre in the unregulated housing sector increased in nearly 67% of the 41 measured locations in Q4 2024 compared to Q4 2023.

In the G5 cities (Amsterdam, The Hague, Eindhoven, Rotterdam, Utrecht), average rents per square metre rose year-on-year, except in Amsterdam.

In the capital, the average rent per square metre declined by 2.8%; new tenants paid €26.31 per square metre per month. This decline is explained by a relative increase in larger rental properties compared to previous quarters. The average size of a rental property in Amsterdam was 74.5 square metres in Q4 2023, increasing to 80.3 square metres a year later. Larger properties are generally cheaper per square metre, leading to a lower average rent per square metre. However, the absolute average rent in Amsterdam continues to rise. Where new tenants paid an average of €2,120 for a rental property in the unregulated housing sector a year ago, this increased to €2,191 per month in Q4, a 3.4% rise.

Nationally, larger rental properties were also rented in Q4 2024. The average size of a rental property in the Netherlands increased from 77.2 square metres in Q4 2023 to 85.6 square metres in the past quarter.

In the other four large cities, the average rent per square metre increased in Q4 2024. In Utrecht, it rose by 4.8% to €20.99. New tenants in Eindhoven paid 2.5% (€17.66), in Rotterdam 7.5% (€20.21), and in The Hague 5.61% (€20.41) more. In these four cities, as in Amsterdam, a higher proportion of larger properties were rented. Since larger properties are generally cheaper per square metre, a price drop could have occurred. However, the significant increase in square metre prices for the remaining properties more than compensated for this effect.

The average rent per square metre for a property in the unregulated housing sector was lowest in Leeuwarden (€12.32), Ede (€13.71), Apeldoorn (€13.73), Enschede (€13.81), and Zwolle (€14.51). With the exception of Zwolle (+0.3%), percentage price declines were recorded in these cities in Q4 2024.

Amsterdam (€26.31), Amstelveen (€21.91), Utrecht (€20.99), Leiden (€20.61), and Haarlem (€20.55) had the highest rents per square metre in Q4 2024. All these cities recorded rents above €20 per square metre, with Amsterdam being the most expensive.

Click here for an overview of price developments in Dutch cities.

Dutch Provinces

At the provincial level, percentage price increases were recorded almost everywhere in Q4 2024, except in North Holland. In this province, the average rent per square metre decreased by 1%. This can also be attributed to the shift in unregulated rental stock, which, since the increase in the rentals of the unregulated housing threshold, includes relatively more large properties. Larger properties are generally cheaper per square metre, exerting a downward effect on rent per square metre. Nevertheless, the absolute average rent in North Holland rose significantly from €1,862 to €2,013, an increase of 8.1%. New tenants in North Holland still paid the most of any province for a rental property in the unregulated housing sector, with an average rent of €22.97 per square metre per month.

The largest percentage price increases in Q4 were in Drenthe (12.7%), Limburg (9.6%), Flevoland (10.2%), and Gelderland (7.8%). The rent per square metre in these provinces remains below the national average. New tenants in Drenthe paid an average of €13.81 per square metre per month. In Limburg and Flevoland, rents were €14.50 and €17.93 per square metre, respectively, for the unregulated housing sector. In Gelderland, new tenants paid €15.18 per square metre per month.

In various provinces, the percentage price increase ranged between 4% and 5%. These include Zeeland (4.2%), North Brabant (5.8%), Overijssel (4.8%), and South Holland (5.1%). In Groningen, the rent per square metre rose by 2.3% in Q4 2024. New tenants paid €16.87 per square metre per month.

Click here for an overview of price developments in Dutch provinces.

About Pararius

Pararius is the largest independent housing platform in the Netherlands. Through the platform, only professional estate agents, including NVM, VBO, VastgoedPRO, housing corporations, managers, investors, and developers, can present their available housing supply. This supply is listed by more than 4,500 rental and sales specialists on Pararius, ensuring high quality and representativeness of the Dutch private sector rental housing stock. The website welcomes more than 2.5 million visitors monthly. These visitors have unlimited access to over 60,000 properties. Pararius is available in six languages and is the largest expat rental platform in the Netherlands for over 350,000 international knowledge workers employed in the country.

Click here for a detailed explanation of the calculations.