First-time private renters spend most of income on housing: CBS

People renting privately for the first time spend a bigger share of their income on housing than any other group in the Netherlands – up to 35% – according to figures by national statistics agency CBS.

Across all private-sector tenants, housing took 30% of disposable income in 2024. That compares with 24.6% for tenants in social housing and 16.3% for people who own their home.

The divide is sharpest at the point of entry to the market. Households made up entirely of first-time movers (starters) in private rentals spent a median 35.1% of their income on housing, the highest figure in the data.

By contrast, owners who have lived in the same home for 20 years or more spent the least, at 15.2%. The widening spending-power gap between long-settled owners and recent renters has been a recurring theme in housing research this year.

For every group, the share was slightly lower than in 2023, continuing the gradual fall CBS reported a year ago and attributes to incomes rising faster than housing costs.

Length of residence matters more for owners than for renters, CBS said: owners’ costs ease as mortgages are paid down and incomes rise, while rents tend to climb each year.

The figures come from the Woonbase, an annual housing study CBS runs with the home affairs ministry (BZK). They cover private households in regular homes and exclude students.