Poverty and housing in the Netherlands: A plea for tenure-neutral public policy

The central issues of this paper can be summarised in two questions. To wha t extent does the Dutch rent subsidy programme keep rented housing affordab le for low-income groups? What kind of government policy could ensure, to a reasonable extent, that low-income groups in the Netherlands have access t o affordable housing, even when the economy is not functioning optimally? T he paper reviews how the net housing expenses have developed in the Netherl ands since the 1970s. It then discusses the Dutch Rent Subsidy Act of 1997 and looks at the impact of this scheme on the net rent ratio for households with low incomes. The fiscal arrangements for home owners are dealt with. The data are drawn from the Housing Demand Survey (WBO), the Social and Cul tural Planning Bureau and the Ministries of Housing and Finance. The paper concludes that the introduction of a tenure-neutral public policy could mak e a robust contribution to the fight against poverty.