The cost of a building licence has risen an average 5% this year, according to home owners’ lobby group VEH.

The organisation also notes a wide difference in fees between local councils. For instance, a licence to add a dormer costs €37 in Leiden but €752 in Eindhoven.

In Son en Breugel adding a dormer cost €296 in 2012 but has now risen to €750. And in last year’s most expensive council, Lopik, the fee for a dormer fell from €841 last year to €420.

The VEH has been lobbying councils for years to introduce a maximum price rise and to use the same financial model so they can be compared with each other.