Carlos Fernandes takes pride in his metalwork on Dutch superyachts that travel the globe. But as a Portuguese migrant worker, he was shocked to learn he might be overpaying by hundreds of euros each month for his family’s apartment. “We found it and moved in,” he explained. “The rent should be between €800 and €1,115, but we’re paying €1,380.”
He was among the first to open his door during a recent awareness campaign in Rotterdam. Volunteers from the city council have visited hundreds of homes to inform residents about new measures to tackle poor living conditions, illegal temporary contracts, and unfair rents.
Just across the street, housing policy manager Tamara Wanker discovered a house where four Polish workers are each paying €450 monthly—double the legal rent the landlord is allowed to charge. “We call these individuals new Rotterdammers, newcomers, and they deserve a home just like everyone else,” she stated.
However, enforcement coordinator Reinier van Oversteeg noted that what newcomers often encounter are high rents, overcrowding, exploitative landlords, and unjust evictions. “We find four, five, or six people in very small houses, sometimes sleeping in shifts—one gets out of bed, and another gets in,” he described. “The homes are poorly maintained, their wages are deducted for housing, and once their work is done, they’re immediately thrown out onto the street.”
With Dutch general elections just two weeks away, the national housing crisis is a major concern for voters. The far-right Party for Freedom (PVV), led by Geert Wilders, which brought down the previous government, continues to lead in polls and blames migrants and refugees for the shortage of decent, affordable housing.
Last month, an anti-immigration and housing protest in The Hague turned violent, with Nazi salutes and attacks on police, journalists, and the office of the liberal-democratic D66 party.
“People are very dissatisfied with housing, and they blame their favorite enemy,” said Koen Haegens, economics editor at De Groene Amsterdammer. “Some parties point to foreigners, others to environmental protectionists making construction too difficult, and Christian parties cite divorced parents.”
According to Statistics Netherlands, the country’s population has grown by about one million in the last decade, reaching around 18 million, mainly due to net migration. Last year, asylum seekers made up only 12% of immigrants, with the majority being labor migrants working in agriculture, meat processing, manufacturing, and distribution.
Wilders, who claimed last year that the housing backlog “simply cannot match the open-border policy and the huge population growth,” uses immigrants as a convenient scapegoat. But experts argue that in cities like Rotterdam, The Hague, and Amsterdam, these workers—numbering up to 800,000—are among the biggest victims of the housing crisis, not the cause.
Peter Boelhouwer, a housing systems professor at TU Delft, observed the harsh reality for thousands of seasonal pickers near his home in Westland who aren’t housed locally by their employers. “What’s happening is dramatic,” he said. “They end up in The Hague in miserable conditions.”
Boelhouwer explained that the Netherlands’ shortage of approximately 400,000 homes stems from multiple factors, including a sharp decline in construction and a rise in single-person households. “There are more older people living alone, especially women,” he noted. “And housing production has dropped significantly since the 2008 global financial crisis.”
In 2023, following a visit to the country, the UN’s special rapporteur on adequate housing highlighted these issues.The housing crisis in the Netherlands is real, but it’s important not to blame migrants or foreigners for it. According to Balakrishnan Rajagopal, the crisis stems from over two decades of poor policy decisions and a failure to legally recognize the right to adequate housing.
Housing affects everyone, but not equally. A tax break for the 57% of homeowners worsens inequality, drives up prices, and reduces rental availability, economists note. Although the Netherlands has Europe’s largest social housing sector and more rooms per person than the European average, these figures hide the severe pressure faced by young renters and migrants, as highlighted by Haegens.
To support an aging population and maintain living standards, a national commission recommends increasing the population to 19 or 20 million by 2050. While all political parties support building more homes, centrist and left-wing groups like GreenLeft-Labour and D66 believe that limiting labor migration—especially in sectors like distribution centers and slaughterhouses—could help ease the housing crisis.
However, critics argue that this approach would require a broader discussion about Dutch benefits, such as generous sick leave and the shortest workweek in Europe. Paul de Beer, a professor and government advisor, points out that reducing foreign labor cannot be addressed without also considering raising the retirement age and increasing working hours—a conversation that hasn’t yet begun.
In Rotterdam, the city is enforcing new tenant protections despite many small landlords selling their properties. Vice-mayor for housing Chantal Zeegers emphasized that the new law provides the legal means to intervene in cases of overpriced, poor-quality housing, including situations where multiple workers share a single room and pay excessive rent.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course Here is a list of FAQs about migrants being blamed for the Netherlands housing crisis with clear and concise answers
Basic Definition Questions
1 What is the housing crisis in the Netherlands
Its a severe shortage of affordable homes for people to buy or rent There are far more people looking for a place to live than there are available houses which drives up prices
2 Why are migrants being blamed for it
Some people point out that the large number of new arrivals increases the demand for housing In a tight market more demand makes the shortage and high prices worse for everyone
3 Are migrants really the main cause of the housing crisis
No they are a contributing factor but not the main cause Experts say the primary reasons are decades of insufficient home construction government policies low interest rates in the past that drove up prices and a large number of singleperson households
How It Works Common Problems
4 How do migrants affect the housing market
They enter the rental market competing for the same limited number of homes Because they often need a place quickly and may not know their rights or the local language some end up paying high prices for lowquality housing
5 Why do migrants sometimes pay more for poorquality homes
They may face discrimination have no Dutch rental history or lack a stable income recognized by Dutch landlords Out of desperation they might accept overpriced antisquat contracts or deals with shady landlords
6 Is it legal for landlords to charge migrants more
No it is not legal Charging different rents for the same property based on someones background is discrimination However it can be difficult to prove and enforce
7 Doesnt this problem hurt Dutch people too
Yes absolutely The housing crisis affects everyone looking for an affordable home especially young people students and lowincome families High demand from any group makes it harder for all these groups
Advanced Nuanced Questions
8 Whats the difference between how expats and refugees impact the housing market
Expats often work in highdemand sectors and can afford the expensive private rental market which can push up prices in certain cities Refugees are initially housed in centralized reception centers but their longterm integration into regular
