The Amsterdam Rent Index: The Housing Market and the Economy, 1550-1850

38 Pages Posted: 9 Oct 2012

See all articles by Piet M. A. Eichholtz

Piet M. A. Eichholtz

University of Maastricht - Limburg Institute of Financial Economics (LIFE)

Stefan Straetmans

Maastricht University ; University of Antwerp - Faculty of Applied Economics

Marcel A.J. Theebe

ING Real Estate Investment

Date Written: October 8, 2012

Abstract

The paper investigates the long run historic development of the Amsterdam rental housing market (1550-1850). Using rent data on a large cross section of residential properties in Amsterdam we are able to develop an annual constant-quality rent index for the entire time period. Whereas nominal rents nearly tripled over the considered sample period, average Amsterdam house rents, in real terms, had approximately the same level in 1850 as they exhibited in 1550. Otherwise stated, nominal rents and goods prices rose at the same pace. Over these 301 years, the real index moves between a minimum level of 45.6 and a maximum of 162.4. As concerns the relation between the housing market and the real economy, we find empirical evidence that fluctuations in rents and fluctuations in proxies of business cycle activity comove, both in nominal and in real terms.

Keywords: rent index, Amsterdam housing market, long term

JEL Classification: N1, N3, N6, N9, R1

Suggested Citation

Eichholtz, Piet M. A. and Straetmans, Stefan and Theebe, Marcel A.J., The Amsterdam Rent Index: The Housing Market and the Economy, 1550-1850 (October 8, 2012). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2158624 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2158624

Piet M. A. Eichholtz (Contact Author)

University of Maastricht - Limburg Institute of Financial Economics (LIFE) ( email )

P.O. Box 616
Maastricht, 6200 MD
Netherlands
+31 43 3883648 (Phone)
+31 43 3258530 (Fax)

Stefan Straetmans

Maastricht University ( email )

Tongersestraat 53
Maastricht, 6200 MD
Netherlands

HOME PAGE: http://www.stefanstraetmans.com

University of Antwerp - Faculty of Applied Economics ( email )

Prinsstraat 13
Antwerp, B-2000
Belgium

Marcel A.J. Theebe

ING Real Estate Investment ( email )

P.O. Box 90463
2509 LL The Hague
Netherlands

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