Renting a House in Emmeloord

The hub of the Noordoostpolder — designed as a central town, surrounded by ten villages.

Emmeloord is not a city that grew organically. It is a city that was built — at the crossroads of the two main roads of the Noordoostpolder, as a central spot for a ring of ten villages within cycling distance. That systematic design is still evident: wide avenues, green belts around the city, neighborhoods each built around their own square or park, and the Poldertoren on city square De Deel as a visible focal point. Emmeloord has about 27,000 inhabitants and is the only true urban center between Zwolle and Lemmer.

Its central location is something you only truly appreciate when you look at a map: Amsterdam, Utrecht, Groningen, and Zwolle are all about an hour's drive away. The A6 runs north of the city. It's not a commuter's paradise with an IC station, but for those who work from home or in the region, renting a home in Emmeloord offers a combination of space and affordability that no longer exists in the Randstad.

City Center

The center is built around two elements: De Deel — the town square with the Poldertoren — and the Lange Nering, a six-hundred-meter shopping street that leads to that square. It's a compact core with supermarkets, specialty shops, hospitality venues, and a weekly market. Theater 't Voorhuys hosts larger performances, while the Muzisch Centrum offers courses and smaller exhibitions.

The housing supply in the center primarily consists of apartments and upper-floor dwellings, partly above shops on the Lange Nering, and partly in small-scale complexes in the Centrum-Oost and Centrum-West neighborhoods. Bos en Gaard, directly north of the shopping core, is a green enclave with a mix of single-family homes and flats. The Tussen Gracht en Vaart neighborhood — its names reveal its structure — forms the transition to the surrounding residential areas. Living centrally here means: everything within walking distance, but a limited and fluctuating rental housing supply.

Espelervaart

Espelervaart, west of the center, is the largest and most varied residential area. The neighborhood is named after the canal that forms its western border and consists of several sub-neighborhoods with their own character. The Rivierenbuurt has streets named after Dutch rivers — it mostly comprises terraced houses from the 1960s and 1970s, with gardens and a quiet layout. The Bergenbuurt, slightly further south, follows the same pattern with street names after European mountains. Espelervaart-West is the newest sub-neighborhood.

It's a typical polder neighborhood structure: low-rise buildings, lots of greenery, separate traffic flows, primary schools, and playgrounds integrated into the neighborhood. The houses are not spectacular but spacious by Randstad standards, and the rental prices reflect that. Espelervaart does have an energy efficiency challenge — many homes from that construction period are not yet insulated to current standards, and the municipality and housing corporation are working on sustainability initiatives.

Revelsant

Revelsant is located southwest of the center and is divided into Revelsant-Noord and Revelsant-Zuid. These neighborhoods are from the same construction period as Espelervaart, with a similar layout: single-family homes, communal entrance flats, and spacious gardens. Revelsant-Zuid borders the Emmelerbos, which gives the neighborhood a greener edge than the northern half.

Similar to Espelervaart, the sustainability challenge is present here. The older housing stock is functional but not energy efficient. Mercatus, the housing corporation for the entire Noordoostpolder, has plans for renovation and replacement new builds in several neighborhoods.

De Zuidert

De Zuidert is the southern residential area, built during the same period as Espelervaart and Revelsant. It is a quiet neighborhood with a predominantly family-oriented layout. The Planten- en Botenbuurt, a sub-area within De Zuidert, is planned for renewal: Mercatus is building homes for families and seniors here. In the Rozenwijk, forty energy-efficient rental homes will be built, a quarter of which are designated for young people under 28.

De Erven and Waterland

De Erven, northeast of the center, and Waterland (also known as Emmeloord-Noord) form the northern residential areas. The layout is more spacious than in the older western neighborhoods, with more variation in housing types. Waterland borders the canals that separate Emmeloord from the open polder landscape.

Emmelhage

Emmelhage is the new development area on the eastern edge of Emmeloord, bordering the Emmelerbos. It is the only neighborhood that feels significantly different from the existing areas: gas-free, with sustainable systems for heating and cooling, and a design incorporating plenty of water and greenery. The neighborhood is subdivided into Boswonen (on the forest side) and Waterwonen/Polderwonen (on the waterside).

Emmelhage is being built in phases. Phase 3 includes about 177 homes and plots — semi-detached houses, terraced houses, and self-build plots. Mercatus is building fifty rental homes in phase 3, with another hundred-plus coming in phase 4. It's where most activity is happening in the Emmeloord housing market, but the supply is largely owner-occupied. Rental homes in Emmelhage are new, energy-efficient, and sought-after — they go quickly.

Mercatus and the Rental Market

Mercatus is the housing corporation for the entire Noordoostpolder. Its housing stock is spread across Emmeloord and the ten surrounding villages. The corporation was founded in 1965 from a merger of three pillarized housing associations that then took over properties from the Domains and the municipality — the polder was, after all, state land, and the first homes were under government management.

In Emmeloord, Mercatus has concrete construction plans: apartments in Dokter Jansenpark, family and senior homes in the Planten- en Botenbuurt, the forty homes in the Rozenwijk, and large numbers in Emmelhage. Registration for social housing is done through the corporation. Allocation is based on registration duration and suitability.

Vrije sector (free sector) housing is smaller in Emmeloord than in larger cities, but it is available — through local real estate agents and on our platform. Free-sector rental prices are significantly lower than in the Randstad, which makes Emmeloord attractive for those coming from the west who are willing to accept the distance.

Responding to a House for Rent in Emmeloord

The market in Emmeloord is less overheated than in the Randstad, but popular homes — especially new builds in Emmelhage and renovated dwellings in the Rozenwijk — do go quickly. Set up an alert on our platform so you get immediate notification of new listings. Emmeloord is a city where renters can still have choices, but you need to know what becomes available.

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