ROTTERDAM, 03/09/05 - Rotterdam city council's policy of imposing salary conditions on new residents is successful, according to Alderman Pastors. He is confident that the Lower House will allow the project nationwide via a legal amendment.

In certain districts with many immigrants, Rotterdam requires new residents to earn at least 120 percent of the minimum wage. The local Centre for Research and Statistics (COS) announced Friday that as a result, 20 percent of the relevant applications for housing were rejected in the first half.

The measure, which applies to rental accommodation costing up to 250 euros a month, also discouraged the arrival of people from outside Rotterdam. In 2003, 45 percent of the new tenants came from outside, compared with just 22 percent in the past six months.

The plan to combat ghetto formation has however had some undesired side-effects. Students and large households are disadvantaged by the experiment. As well, rack-renters try to evade the rule and bona-fide landlords have more difficulty in renting accommodation.

The Rotterdam project will run to January 2006. The Lower House will discuss a bill Tuesday and Wednesday making the trial possible everywhere in the Netherlands. Pastors said Friday that the undesired side-effects would disappear once the project has a full legal status.

Rotterdam is also going ahead with giving away houses free in certain poor neighbourhoods. A condition of this project is that the buyer renovates the house for tens of thousands of euros.?