Swedish real estate investor Heimstaden is selling off thousands of homes in the Netherlands.

In total, some 12,000 homes in the Netherlands will be sold as soon as their tenant leaves, a process which may take 10 years, the company says. Heimstaden has a portfolio of some 13,500 residential properties in the Netherlands, most of which are rent-controlled.

Heimstaden expects some 2,500 homes to be sold in the coming two years. They will be sold one by one to private people, not institutional investors, the company said, and some tenants will also be offered the option to buy their own home.

According to the FD, Heimstaden has to sell the properties because it needs cash to refinance debts.

This is something Heimstaden denied in a press statement last week. “These actions are solely aimed at preserving our desired rating and are unrelated to any capital requirement for upcoming maturities, which currently does not exist,” the statement said. Last week, the company also sold its Icelandic portfolio.

In 2019 Heimstaden bought over 9,500 Dutch homes from British investment group Round Hill for €1.4bn, the biggest deal ever agreed in the Netherlands in terms of the number of properties.

The deal meant Heimstaden was the third biggest private housing owner in the Netherlands.

The paper reported earlier that the sale had been prompted by government animosity towards landlords – namely, increasing rent controls and higher property transfer taxes.

A number of institutional investors including Heimstaden have expressed concerns about government policy in recent months.

Housing minister Hugo de Jonge also welcomed the sale on Friday, saying it was good news for people who wanted to get a foot on the housing ladder.