Nederlands
I am probably not the only one who wants to buy a house. I’m pretty sure that’s the case, given the competition if you want to schedule a viewing. It is bizarre what you have to earn and what kind of job you have to have to buy a house on your own. Well yes, there will probably be corners in North Groningen or a remote village in Zeeland where this is still possible, but I would like to live somewhat close to my work. Not too much to ask for, I think. But you will be disappointed: Eindhoven and the surrounding areas are expensive, very expensive. An average house in Eindhoven now costs 380,000 euros (preliminary figures for Q3, 2020). Last year (Q3, 2019) that was still 336,000 euros. That difference, 44,000 euros, I cannot save in one year. And I don’t want to know what the average price will be in 2021. For an average house of 380,000 you have to earn 78,962 euros per year. That is more than twice the average Dutch income and about 6,000 euros gross per month. To earn this, you have to be a public prosecutor, general practitioner or professor, for example.
Cheapest option
Well, let’s not look at the average price, but at the cheapest houses in Eindhoven. I check them out almost every day, so I have a good overview: you buy a terraced house for about 260,000 euros, with a little overbidding and some luck included. This means that you ‘only’ have to earn 60,908 euros per year, about 4,700 euros per month. So even our cheapest houses are only reserved for people who earn a lot or who want to buy together with someone else. That is not independence to me, having to buy with someone if you don’t want to. It is especially crooked that, according to the mortgage lender, I would not be able to pay (buy) my own house where I live now, but renting it is just fine. If I were to buy, my monthly costs would be hundreds of euros lower. And yes, I understand that you have to save money for maintenance if you own a house, but even with the savings taking into consideration, I would still have more money left each month. How crooked is that? And because you are forced to rent which is very expensive, you can hardly save to have a better chance of buying a house in the future (own money is key, but there is no saving against the rising prices). A vicious circle that sometimes makes me sad. I work very hard and have a good job, but I still don’t buy anything for that.
Kiss a frog
So for now, buying my own house seems just as likely as the fairy tale in which the frog turns into a prince after a kiss. To keep dreaming a bit, here are the three features I hope to find in a house:
1: a garden
2: a fireplace
3: a bathtub
The latter I can always build in, of course, so the first two points are the most important. Not very much to ask, right? Will you cross your fingers for me and hope I can make it happen someday? Have you bought a house on your own in this region and do you have any tips? I’d love to hear them! Of course expressing frustrations is fine too, it might be a relief.
Love,
Bridge