Laakhaven-Oost, Den Haag

Living in Laakhaven-Oost

Laakhaven-Oost is city living in its most compact form, and living here overwhelmingly means apartment living — 98% of the stock is flats.

With 18,046 residents per km², you will know your streets are alive — and so will your ears; visit on a Friday evening before you commit. Water makes up 15% of its surface — canals and waterfront are part of daily scenery here, and so are the price tags of homes that face them.

Den Haag combines government and expat demand — ministries, embassies, international courts and Shell — with one of the widest price ranges of any Dutch city: stately streets near the dunes at one end, dense and affordable neighborhoods a couple of kilometers inland at the other.

The housing market in Laakhaven-Oost

The average home value (WOZ) in Laakhaven-Oost is €211,000, which puts it at #103 of 110 neighborhoods in Den Haag — 43% below the city median, leaving room in the budget that pricier neighborhoods would swallow. For scale: Den Haag's cheapest buurt averages €82,000 and its most expensive €919,000, so Laakhaven-Oost sits in the budget band of the city.

The direction of the market: between 2015 and 2025 the average WOZ value here rose from €126,000 to €239,000, up 90% — slower than the city as a whole (+125%). WOZ values lag the market by about a year, but the trend itself is reliable.

Here is the catch for buyers: only 11% of homes are owner-occupied, and 67% of the stock is social housing that never reaches the open market. Few homes come up for sale, so when one does, expect competition and act fast on viewings. The upside of the same number: neighborhoods with a big rental base tend to feel lively and transient rather than settled — decide which you want before you fall for a listing.

Who lives here

Demographically, Laakhaven-Oost is shaped by people in their late twenties to early forties (34% of its 5,270 residents), followed by 15-to-25 year olds at 29%. More than half of all households (68%) are single-person — this is a neighborhood of independents, not minivans. The average household counts 1.6 people.

As for who your neighbors would be: incomes skew modest — 68% of households are in the lower national bracket; average income per resident is €24,000 a year.

Daily errands, coffee and dinner

Day to day: groceries are a non-issue — 3 large supermarkets within a kilometer; there are about 17 cafés and restaurants within walking distance — enough choice without the crowds.

The practical checklist most buyers forget to make: pharmacy 8 min walk · GP 8 min · hospital 2.6 km · library 1.2 km · 4 cinemas within 5 km. None of these will decide a purchase on their own, but a GP taking new patients nearby is the kind of thing you only miss after moving.

Families and schools

For families: the nearest primary school is 7 minutes on foot; daycare is well covered (6 locations nearby) — though Dutch waiting lists mean you register the week you know you're expecting, not the week you need it; secondary school is a 5-minute bike ride, which Dutch teenagers do in all weather.

Getting around

Getting around: the station is a 6-minute cycle, standard Dutch commuting range; the nearest highway on-ramp is 2.1 km away; and at 0.3 cars per household, most residents simply don't own one — if you do, factor in permit costs and waiting lists before you buy.

Before you bid in Laakhaven-Oost

Before you bid in Laakhaven-Oost: listings are scarce here, which pushes bidding above asking more often — decide your maximum before the viewing, not during it. Also, the price gap with the rest of Den Haag is real, but so is the reason for it — walk the neighborhood at different times of day before committing.

None of these averages can tell you whether the specific house you found is fairly priced — that depends on its size, energy label, state of maintenance and the recent sales around it. That is exactly what a free HomeReview report checks, in about 10 seconds, for any Dutch address.

Frequently asked questions

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Closest in price — worth a look if Laakhaven-Oost is out of reach or you want alternatives.