The City of Amsterdam offers help faster to people with mortgage payment arrears
The municipality of Amsterdam is participating in a trial in which help is offered to people with mortgage arrears and municipal debts. With this experiment, municipalities and mortgage lenders hope to identify people with payment problems and earlier and thus prevent (further) problems.
The trial will start in January 2022 and is a collaboration between a total of fifteen municipalities, Aegon and Rabobank. The NVVK (branch association for debt counseling, social banking and administration) and the Association of Dutch Municipalities are also involved.
Municipalities and mortgage lenders have been exchanging data for some time to be able to offer early help. Payment arrears have been identified with regard to rent, energy bills, drinking water or healthcare costs, and the municipal debt counseling service is notified. Since January 1, a law has come into effect that municipalities are then obliged to make an offer of assistance. In municipalities where this trial is being conducted, the group will be expanded to include payment arrears on mortgages and municipal taxes.
According to outgoing State Secretary Dennis Wiersma (SZW), people often go on too long with financial worries. “That may be out of shame, but also because people don’t know where to look for help or whether water is available.” With these measures, the municipality is taking the initiative to offer help, says Wiersma. “That can make the difference if you are dealing with money worries and can no longer see a solution.”