Amsterdam corporations lobbying in The Hague for higher rents

The rents of social housing in accordance with the agreements may not exceed one per cent increase above inflation. The Amsterdam corporations want the rent of houses that end up in the private sector, not be included in here.

This is evident from correspondence between director Egbert de Vries of the Amsterdam Federation of Housing Associations (AFWC) and First MPs, which is owned by Het Parool.

The Senate meets Tuesday about the so-called "rent" approach. The national corporation dome Aedes and Woonbond arrived here earlier agreed. Their agreements with some minor adjustments over by Minister Stef Blok (Housing).

Aedes wants the rent increase of social housing to be liberalized only counts for half of the part that is under the lease boundary. The AFWC will, according to the letter from De Vries, that this category of rental housing should not enter into the calculation of the rent approach. For example, the rent of these houses would be far above that can suit one percent plus inflation.

Skew inhabitants
AFWC was from the beginning against the Housing Agreement. The Amsterdam corporations find that they already do enough for affordability through agreements with the municipality and the tenants organization. A brake on the rent would, according to the corporation directors even lead to rent for groups that need it, can be less moderate. The rental fee approach mitigates After all, the rent askew inhabitants, and that is according to the Amsterdam corporations ultimately at the expense of other tenants, because the money can only be spent once.

(The minister gives us the same, but the Amsterdam corporations just keep pushing and pulling

Director Ronald Paping the Woonbond)

Even now writes again De Vries that the agreement on balance is not in the interest of the Amsterdam tenants. "This is bad for families with middle income, who want to live in Amsterdam," according to the letter of 29 February this year.

Commenting he said Monday, "We have a condition proposed that liberalized housing alone does not count towards the rent approach in municipalities where agreements exist with the city and tenants about the mid-housing." De Vries adds that the Woonbond has little regard for the Amsterdam situation with few properties and almost no rental housing in the middle.

Black on white
When the Housing Agreement lay is AFWC immediately started a lobby against the agreement, critics say. Director Ronald Paping the Woonbond calls also for some time. He thinks the rent approach is important for affordability, but also in order to keep the stock of social housing and affordable rental housing up to standard.

"It turns out all the AFWC its own course," says Paping. "The minister gives us the same, but the Amsterdam corporations just keep pushing and pulling. If you do have to appeal to them to deny that again, but the leaked correspondence is now black and white."

http://www.parool.nl/  By: TON DAMEN Photo: Reuters