Local authority taxes on home owners are rising by an average of 5.3% this year, but in Amsterdam they are shooting up more than 20% according to calculations by home owners lobby group Vereniging Eigen Huis.

The association earlier forecast an average property tax rise of 3.1% but says that now needs revising sharply upwards as local councils fill gaps in their spending plans. Waste collection charges are also rising by an average of 7.8%.

The biggest increase, costing home owners an average €121 more a year, is in the local authority area of Opmeer, where the property tax is rising 41% because the council has a budget shortfall of €1m.

‘We were faced with closing sports halls or the swimming pool or putting up taxes for home owners. It is a painful measure but the most acceptable one to keep our services intact,’ a spokesman told the Telegraaf.

‘There is a risk that the property tax (ozb) will go up even further when councils try to sort out their budgets for 2022,’ VEH director Karsten Klein said. ‘We would urge the cabinet to now make agreements about extra financing to prevent any further increase.’

The ozb tax is based on property values, and this too has had an impact on the size of the increase.

Check out the situation in your local authority area (Dutch)