Amsterdam is going to take a tougher line on vacancy

11-2-2022 — 

Currently in Amsterdam it is a legal obligation to report properties that have been vacant for more than six months to the municipality of Amsterdam. This may concern properties that are waiting for a new tenant or properties that are to be renovated or sold.

Research shows that there are currently about 4,000 empty properties in the capital. If it is up to councillor Jakob Wedemeijer, owners of vacant properties should be obliged to get their properties back into use as soon as possible. With this plan the city council wants to reduce the number of long-term vacant properties.

Vacancy consultation takes place earlier
The proposal, which should take effect in September, means that the municipality can oblige owners to make a house habitable again within a certain period of time. In addition, owners can be required to apply for a permit for temporary rental, so that homes that will not be renovated or demolished for a long time can be occupied in the meantime. The so-called vacancy consultation, a discussion between the municipality and the owner of a property, will be brought forward from 3 to 2 months after the vacancy report. Landlords can be fined up to €8,700 for not complying with the rules.

Plans with an SP flavor
In itself a very good plan, given the current housing shortage, to combat vacancy as much as possible. But there seems to be a clear Socialist Party sauce over the plans. According to Jakob Wedemeijer a landlord should be able to be forced to lower the rent to an "acceptable level". It seems to us that the market determines what is acceptable and that the municipality should not interfere with this. An investor wants a return on his money. He understands that 6 months of vacancy only costs money and will drop the price if it appears that the requested rent is too high. You saw this clearly during the Corona crisis.
Of course there are exceptions, such as the American Blackrock. Last summer they reported 328 vacant properties. The municipality of Amsterdam is right to take note of this. But let's not start communist practices in which the municipality does profits from the ever-higher WOZ and land revenues, but then tells the owner how much rent to charge for a property.