Historical mortgage rates in the Netherlands 2003-2018

The interest rate for a new mortgage in the Netherlands decreased from previous years in 2018, reaching an average of 2.4 percent. The average interest rate for outstanding mortgages had a similar development. From a mortgage rate of 5.45 percent in 2003, it declined to a rate of 3.2 percent in 2018. These are the lowest values registered since the source started to measure the data in 2003.

Are mortgage rates in the Netherlands different from other European countries?

When comparing this ranking to data that covers multiple European countries, the Netherlands’ mortgage rate was similar to the rates found in Belgium (1.91 percent in the first quarter of 2019), the United Kingdom (2.11 percent) and Germany (1.79 percent). It was, however, a lot lower than the rates in Eastern Europe. Hungary and Poland, for example, had mortgage rates of around five and six percent. For more information on the European mortgage market and how much the countries differ from each other, please visit this dedicated research page.

How big is the mortgage market in the Netherlands?

In 2018, approximately 346,000 mortgage loans were sold. This was a decrease from the previous year, but still higher than previous years. The Netherlands is regarded as one of the countries with the highest mortgage debt in Europe, as Dutch homeowners were able to for many years to deduct interest paid from pre-tax income (a system known in the Netherlands as hypotheekrenteaftrek). Total mortgage debt of Dutch households reached a value of approximately 714 billion euros in 2018.