The Netherlands has 17.8 million m² of vacant buildings: roughly enough floor space to house the entire city of Utrecht (about 200,000 standard new apartments), new figures show. At the same time, a leading construction economist says the housing shortage could be significantly reduced within a few years if the country sticks to focused, practical policies and keeps building at the same pace.
How much space is sitting empty and why
An analysis by Statistics Netherlands (CBS) and Pointer finds widespread, long-term vacancy across retail, offices, and other property types. About 50,000 potentially useful dwellings are hidden above or behind shops, where entrances were removed to expand storefronts. Elsewhere, empty offices and commercial sites could be converted but are held back by strict rules, slow permits, or buildings in poor condition.
Municipalities also say their legal tools to force action are limited, which makes it hard to bring idle space back into use quickly. One example cited: an apartment in The Hague left unused for almost two years due to a backlog of renovation permits. Politically, vacancy fines are being discussed, but experts warn they only work if cities can process permits fast and define “too long” clearly.
Photo Credits: Fons Heijnsbroek/Unsplash
A faster path to easing the shortage
In a separate warning, but with a practical tone, Taco van Hoek, director of the Economic Institute for Construction (EIB), argues the crisis is solvable faster than many think. If the Netherlands consistently delivers around 100,000 homes per year and removes bottlenecks, the shortage can be cut back within five years, he told De Telegraaf. He favours small, near-term projects: completing blocks, adding streets at town edges, and targeted densification, over huge, long-range plans that won’t produce homes until the 2040s. He also says rules that over-prescribe affordability, plus heavy regulation, have weakened private rental supply, and warns against cutting mortgage support for first-time buyers. He welcomes the recent easing of nitrogen rules that had stalled permits.
These two threads point to a common solution set:
Convert what we have: Reopen stairwells to homes above shops; accelerate office-to-housing conversions; and allow temporary, modular, or mixed-use solutions where full redevelopment is slow. That means faster permitting, clear standards, and practical guidance for owners.
Build steadily where it’s easiest: Fill gaps in existing neighbourhoods and expand on town edges where utilities and transport already exist. Keep a predictable pipeline of ~100,000 homes a year so the sector can plan and hire.
What could be done to combat the issue
Permit triage and deadlines: Clear targets for municipalities to decide on conversion permits, tied to extra staffing where backlogs persist.
Standardised conversion rules: National templates for safety, light, and access to speed up shop-top and office conversions.
Balanced regulation: Protect affordability without freezing out investment needed for mid-market rentals and steady building output.
The Netherlands has a large pool of underused space and a credible route to ramp up supply quickly. Turning empty square meters into homes and keeping new construction steady, supported by faster permits and balanced rules, can make a visible dent in the shortage within a few years.
