According to new figures from Statistics Netherlands (CBS) and Kadaster, the most expensive area to buy a house in the Netherlands in 2017 was Bloemendaal. This area was also the most expensive in previous years. Delfzijl was the cheapest area when it comes to buying a house.

Buying a house in the Netherlands

In the Netherlands, house prices are extremely dependent on the area in which the house is situated, as well as, of course, the type of house. The average cost for a house on the Dutch housing market increased to 263.000 euros in 2017, making it the most it has been in the last 17 years.

The average house price in 80 percent of Dutch municipalities in 2017 was between 195.000 euros and 337.000 euros. The municipalities that fall below this average tended to be situated close to the border of the Netherlands, in, for example, Groningen, Friesland and Limburg.

Expensive Dutch houses

The most expensive houses could be found in Bloemendaal in 2017. There, people paid on average 776.000 euros for a house. Wassenaar, Laren in North Holland, Blaricum and Heemstede also made it into the top five, in all of these municipalities the average house price was above half-a-million euros.

At the upper end of the spectrum, house prices were between 337.000 euros and 776.000 euros. Amsterdam belongs to the upper end, as the average house price there was almost 408.000 euros.

Cheap Dutch houses

The municipality with the cheapest house prices was Delfzijl. There, house prices were 5,5 times cheaper than in Bloemendaal. The difference in price between these two municipalities has grown in the last year. In 2016 a house in Delfzijl was only 5,1 times cheaper than in Bloemendaal. On average a house in Delfzijl cost 141.000 euros in 2017. This makes it the only municipality where the average house price was below 150.000 euros last year.

Rental increases in the Netherlands

The increase in house prices in the Netherlands was mirrored by the increase in rental prices in the free sector. According to research from the Dutch Association of Real Estate Agents and Appraisers (NVM), the average cost of a rental property in the free sector is now 1.000 euros per month.

In 2017, average rental prices for new contracts increased by 2,5 percent. Amsterdam is the still most expensive city when it comes to rent, but Rotterdam, Almere and Eindhoven experienced the greatest rental increase last year.