Rotterdam is following in Amsterdam’s footsteps and introducing extra rules for home buyers from January.

The city plans to ensure that no-one can buy a property with an official value of up to €355,000 without either living in it personally, or by renting it to a close relative.

The city hopes the measure will stop investors buying up cheaper homes and turning them into expensive rental apartments and houses. The rule already applied to newly built properties.

The new rules are being made possible by legislation which comes into effect in January. Amsterdam is doing the same, with a price limit of €512,000, and The Hague and Utrecht are also working on similar plans.

Figures show that many homes in Rotterdam are currently bought by investors. In the Charlois district, which is one of the 16 parts of the city where the new rules will apply, some 50% of homes which come on the market are being bought as an investment.

There are currently over 500 homes costing less €355,000 in Rotterdam on housing website Funda.nl.