Home prices have doubled in the past nine years. The home for sale was 99 percent higher in July than it was in June 2013, according to figures from the Netherlands Statistics Office.

Prices for existing owner-occupied homes fell to their lowest level in June 2013 – at the height of the credit crunch. Since then, home prices have risen almost non-stop and the price of a home for sale is almost double that.

This boom in the housing market has several reasons. For example, there is a shortage of housing, which leads to higher prices. Financing options for owner-occupied homes have been expanded, so that larger amounts can be offered. Low interest rates on savings and bonds also play a role, prompting investors to focus more on the Dutch housing market.

Meanwhile, the boom itself now appears to have abated somewhat: In July, house prices rose less quickly for the third month in a row than they had in the previous month. Moreover, the number of transactions decreased again compared to last year. In the first seven months of this year, 107,722 homes were sold, 22 percent less than the same period last year.

The housing market cooldown is due to a combination of prices and rising mortgage rates. Home prices are now so high that fewer and fewer people can put enough money on the table. At the same time, mortgage interest rates have been rising for a number of months, which means less can be borrowed. As a result, the housing supply has increased slightly in recent months.