Municipality wants to force rent reduction by student housing landlord
The Municipality of Amsterdam is forcing a landlord in the Zuidoost district to lower the rents of student housing units. If the landlord fails to comply, the municipality may take over management of the properties. “Those who charge excessive rents or intimidate tenants will not get away with it.”
The Municipality of Amsterdam is requiring a landlord of student housing in Zuidoost to reduce rental prices. According to the municipality, the rents are “structurally too high.” The overcharges reportedly range from a few euros to several hundred euros per dwelling, the municipality said in a press release. According to newspaper Het Parool, the landlord in question is student housing provider HiCondo.
The landlord has four weeks to reduce the rents to the legally permitted level. Failure to do so could result in fines amounting to hundreds of thousands of euros. If the situation does not improve on a structural basis, the municipality will take over management of the properties in order to protect tenants.
Victims
Amsterdam's Housing Councillor Zita Pels said she is determined to put an end to the exploitation of vulnerable tenants. “Students and young people have for years been victims of rogue landlords who exploit the extreme housing shortage in our city.” She pointed to the Affordable Rent Act (Wet betaalbare huur), which gives municipalities the power to hold landlords accountable. “Those who charge excessive rents or intimidate tenants will not simply get away with it.”
The municipality says it aims to help 20,000 Amsterdam households over the coming years by checking rental contracts for excessive rents, thereby providing better protection for tenants.
