Economy

Wêrom't de fermogensferskillen tusken generaasjes no grutter binne as ynkomstferskillen

Why Generational Wealth Gaps Are Now Larger Than Income Gaps

August 6, 2025 · Frisian News

Property ownership and inherited assets now divide young and old workers far more than wages do. This shift reflects decades of asset inflation that wage earners alone cannot match.

Frysk

In 35-jierrige kantoarmeiwurker yn Amsterdam fertsjinnet 15 prosint mear as in kollega op deselde leeftyd tritich jier lyn. Dochs hat dy wurker mar in fraksje fan it fermogen. De kleau tusken wat jonge minsken keapje kinne en wat harren âlders op deselde leeftyd keapten, is sa grut wurden dat ynkomstferskillen dêrby yn it neat falle. Undersyk fan de Nederlânske sintrale bank toant oan dat fermogensferskillen tusken leeftydsgroepen ferdûbele binne wylst leanferskillen tusken rike en earme wurknimmers amper feroare binne.

Húspriizen makken dizze wig. Sûnt 1995 giene Nederlânske húsfestingskosten hast trije kear rapper omheech as lean. In hûs dat yn 1990 fjouwer kear in jierssalaris koste, kostet hjoed acht kear in jierssalaris. In jong stel mei tegearre 100.000 euro oan fertsjinsten stiet foar in hypoteek fan 600.000 euro foar in beskieden appartement. Harren âlders lienden 200.000 foar in grutter hûs by gelikense kombinearre ynkomsten. De berekkening giet net op foar immen sûnder famyljefermogen.

Erfskip fersterket it effekt. Bern fan húseigeners erve net allinne eigendom mar ek de opboude winsten út fjouwer desennia fan wurdearring. In 35-jierrige dy't in erfskip fan 300.000 euro kriget kin kontant keapje wat in leeftydsgenoat sûnder famyljefermogen tritich jier lang finansearje moat. Dit set generaasjoneel foardiel om yn konkrete guod. Ynstitúsjonele ynvestearders en bûtenlânsk kapitaal biede ek húspriizen op. De merk jout net om rjochtfeardigens, allinne wat keapers betelje wolle.

Lean groeide, mar fermogen groeide rapper. In loodsjitter yn 1995 fertsjinne yn absolute euro's minder as hjoed, dochs koe er makliker sparje en fermogen opbouwe. Wurknimmers fan hjoed fertsjinje mear nominaal ynkommen mar steane foar in berch skuld foardat sy eat besitte. Guon ekonomen neame dit wolstân. Wurknimmers witte it better. De kleau tusken stabyl wurk en húsbesitten is sa grut wurden dat in protte ûnder de fjirtich it gewoan opjouwe.

Beliedsmakers hawwe min antwurden. Mear wenningen bouwe kostet jierren en rint oeral op lokaal ferset oan. Fermogen swier genôch belaasje om wat út te meitsjen freget politike wil dy't gjin regearing blykber hawwe wol. Guon lannen probearren hierkontrôle, wat it oanbod beperket en kosten fierder ferheget. Oaren probearren in tarief op bûtenlânske keapers, wat jild ferskyft mar gjin húzen makket. De fermogenskleau sil trochgroeie oant immen ophâldt mei húsfesting as ynvestearringsportfolio en begjint it te sjen as ûnderdak.

English

A 35-year-old office worker in Amsterdam earns 15 percent more than a colleague did at the same age thirty years ago. Yet that worker owns a fraction of the property wealth. The gap between what young people can buy and what their parents bought at the same life stage has grown so wide that income differences now pale beside it. Research from the Dutch central bank shows wealth gaps between age groups have doubled while wage gaps between rich and poor workers have barely moved.

Property prices drove this wedge. Since 1995, Dutch housing costs rose nearly three times faster than wages. A house that cost four times a year's salary in 1990 costs eight times a year's salary today. A young couple earning 100,000 euros together faces a 600,000 euro mortgage for a modest apartment. Their parents borrowed 200,000 for a larger house on similar combined income. The math simply does not work for anyone without family money behind them.

Inheritance amplifies the effect. Children of homeowners inherit not just property but the accumulated gains from four decades of appreciation. A 35-year-old who receives a 300,000 euro inheritance can buy outright what a peer without family wealth must finance over thirty years. This transfers generational advantage into concrete assets. Institutional investors and foreign capital also bid up property prices, making it harder for locals to compete. The market does not care about fairness, only what buyers will pay.

Wages grew, but wealth grew faster. A plumber in 1995 earned less in absolute euros than today, yet could save and build equity more easily. Today's workers earn more nominal income but face a mountain of debt before they own anything. Some economists call this prosperity. Workers know better. The gap between stable employment and owning a home has become so large that many under 40 simply give up trying.

Policymakers have few answers. Building more housing takes years and faces local resistance everywhere. Taxing wealth hard enough to matter requires political will no government seems to have. Some countries tried rent control, which cuts supply and raises costs further. Others tried stamp duty on foreign buyers, which moves money around but does not create homes. The wealth divide will keep growing until someone stops treating housing like an investment portfolio and starts treating it like shelter.

Published August 6, 2025 · Frisian News · Ljouwert, Fryslân