Local governments urged to retain social zoning status of land sites

In February, 40 market participants in the senior living and care sector, including housing corporations, building companies and operators of medical facilities and care homes, signed a pact pledging to facilitate the ability of senior residents in Rotterdam to live at home for as long as possible. In an interview with Dutch building trade publication Cobouw, Erwin Drenth, Bouwinvest Director of Dutch Healthcare Investments, said local authorities need to retain the social zoning status of potential building sites if the accord’s objective to construct ten thousand extra homes for the elderly in Rotterdam is to be achieved.

Dutch pension funds are keen to invest in senior housing due to the stable financial returns they generate as well as their positive social impact, Erwin said. "Investment capital is therefore not the problem in principle, but the investment product is not always there. As far as we are concerned, the local authorities should be a facilitator, by ensuring, for example, that former school buildings, homes for the elderly, swimming pools and local government offices retain their social zoning status. Otherwise those sites are only of interest to the highest bidder, which in practice does not lead to prioritising the supply of the urgently needed homes for seniors. It is no coincidence that 75% of our investments in this segment are located on land with a social zoning status."

To read the full article (in Dutch), click here.