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5,000 homes set to disappear from Amsterdam’s rental market

Insights 26 Feb 2026

Supply in Amsterdam’s mid-rental segment has all but dried up. Due to the ongoing wave of individual unit sales, the city’s rental stock has decreased by 5,000 homes. Between 2023 and 2025, the share of the housing stock owned by private investors fell from 7.4% to 6.2%. While the Affordable Rent Act (Wet betaalbare huur) aimed to expand the affordable segment, the outcome appears to have been the opposite.

In 2025, just 2% of apartments coming onto the market for rent were in the mid-rental segment. In 2024, this share was still 6%—a decline of no less than 69% in a single year. The contraction in this segment is therefore substantially stronger than the decline in Amsterdam’s total rental supply, which fell by 18%. Without structural measures to improve the fiscal framework for investors and stimulate new-build development in the mid-rental segment, the rental stock is at risk of shrinking further, with sharply rising rents as a result. To better steer planning and development, up-to-date insight into the size and composition of the rental stock is also crucial.

Housing shortage in the Amsterdam region now 47,100 homes

The housing shortage in the Netherlands is set to rise to 4.8% of the total housing stock in 2026, according to ABF Research’s annual Primos forecast. The situation in the Amsterdam region is considerably more severe: the shortage now stands at 47,100 homes, equivalent to 6.4% of the total stock. With rental supply shrinking, shortages in the rental sector are increasing and pressure on Amsterdam’s rental market is intensifying rapidly. For middle-income households, finding suitable rental housing in the city is becoming increasingly difficult, while waiting times and competition continue to rise.

5,000 homes disappearing from Amsterdam’s rental market
In Amsterdam, the rental stock has decreased by 5,000 homes as a result of investors selling rental homes as individual units. Between 2023 and 2025, the share of the housing stock owned by private investors fell from 7.4% to 6.2%. Even in the Netherlands’ tightest housing market, the available rental supply is therefore continuing to contract. This shrinkage increases pressure on the urban rental sector and pushes rents further upwards.

Individual unit sales set to continue in the coming years
The sale of rental homes as individual units is expected to continue in 2026. More than half of the investors and housing associations surveyed by Capital Value indicate that they intend to sell more homes in the coming years than in previous years. Investors are increasingly opting for individual unit sales due to higher tax burdens and lower yields from holding rental properties. As a result, the rental stock remains under structural pressure. Housing associations are also selling assets to create investment capacity for new-build development and sustainability upgrades.

Private-sector rents up a further 10.8% in Q4 2025
With supply in the mid-rental segment contracting sharply, a significant share of demand is shifting to the private sector, increasing upward price pressure. In Q4 2025, the average rent for an apartment in the private sector increased by 10.8% compared with Q4 2024. At the same time, the number of new lettings in 2025 was 17% lower than in 2024, indicating that availability is also under pressure in the private sector. Private-sector rents are expected to rise further, driven by intensifying competition among home seekers and the persistent housing shortage.

2025 record year for investment in new rental housing

In Amsterdam, around 4,000 new rental homes saw investment committed in 2025, marking a record level of new-build investment in the city. Never before has so much capital been allocated to new rental housing in a single year. These investments are crucial for future rental supply, but new-build takes time. The homes in which investment was made in 2025 are expected to be added to Amsterdam’s rental stock only in 2027.

The rental homes actually added to the stock in 2025—around 2,000 new units—are the result of investment decisions made in 2023. Investment levels were lower in that year, which limited the volume of new additions in 2025. As a result, despite record investment in 2025, Amsterdam’s rental market remains under pressure. Compared with the 7,000 homes sold as individual units, new-build additions remain insufficient to offset the contraction in rental supply.

Arjan Peerboom, CEO of Capital Value: “In recent years, Amsterdam’s housing market has become overregulated and the investment climate has deteriorated. A combination of factors is forcing many investors to sell rental homes when tenants move out. As rental supply declines, rents are rising. At the same time, too few new rental homes are being delivered to ease pressure on the rental market. The key now lies with both central government and the municipality to prevent a further erosion of the rental market. Reducing the tax burden for private investors and revising the Affordable Rent Act can bring the current wave of individual unit sales to a halt. At the same time, the municipality can accelerate procedures, limit local regulation, and provide clear, stable frameworks so that new-build projects are actually delivered. By regulating less and incentivising more, we can structurally increase housing production towards 10,000 homes per year in Amsterdam.”

Insight into the rental stock is essential for targeted policy
The combination of a shrinking rental stock and persistently strong demand is further tightening Amsterdam’s rental market. An additional challenge is that many municipalities lack up-to-date and comprehensive insight into the size and composition of their rental stock. This insight is essential for targeted policy to safeguard rental supply and stimulate new-build development in the right segments. “A substantiated, data-driven rental register at municipal level is an absolute prerequisite to expand the rental stock in a future-proof way over the coming years,” Capital Value states.

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