Affordable rentals in the Netherlands
Imagine you want to live in the Netherlands. You’d like to live somewhere nice, centrally located, roomy and quiet. But you’ve been looking for weeks and your standards are going down very fast. You need a place to live, and you are considering this closet for 878 a month. It’s in the center of Amsterdam, so hey, at least it meet one of your criteria! You’ll live there for a few weeks while you look for something better.  

Have you tried the law of attraction?
Maybe you’ve already heard how bad it is, and you found a place that’s a little bit better. Like, a large ‘anti-squat’ space in an old office building, with no central heating or kitchen, where you are not allowed to have more than 4 visitors at a time or and can be kicked out with 3 weeks notice. 

You’re not one to complain, and you prefer to have an optimistic outlook. You want to take charge of your own destiny and make your own decisions. If you could just be a little bit more optimistic, better things will come your way soon!

Begging might help
But what if they don’t? There is always someone with lower standards than you, prepared to pay more for less. Left to individual choice we all end up in a race to the bottom. Even the housing laws we still have are often ignored by greedy landlords. Because of this, the government offers legal information about housing rights.

Doctors recommend: Solidarity
Asking politely for your rights to be respected is nice, but it’s still not very dignified, reasonable, relaxing or even acceptable. At the same time, property owners are still trying to demolish our housing rights. Fight back! Find out more here about how to join BPW in the fight for dignity and decent housing. 
Still not convinced? Let’s have a look at the different ways landlords and the housing ‘market’ are making people miserable across the country.