Senior Housing Policy Advisor

Project overview

For the municipality of Dongen, YER is looking for a Senior Housing Policy Advisor.

The Position

General

The Act to Strengthen Housing Regulation will largely come into effect on July 1, 2026. Municipalities must, among other things, draw up a housing program and prepare a housing ordinance with an urgency regulation. The municipality will work closely with other municipalities in the Breda-Tilburg Urban Region (SRBT) on this. For this assignment, the municipal aim is to have both the housing program and the housing ordinance administratively approved by July 1, 2027, at the latest.

Objective of the Assignment

The candidate works integrally with colleagues within the spatial domain, social domain, and economy, as housing affects almost all societal tasks within our municipality.

Results

About the Company

The municipality of Dongen is looking for an experienced and proactive Housing Policy Advisor who can independently manage current and new housing tasks and effectively establish the role in terms of content and process. Within the municipality, work is done with self-organizing teams. This means a lot of collaboration, short lines of communication, significant responsibility, and pragmatic rather than bureaucratic work. We are looking for an experienced and proactive policy advisor who is energized by societal issues related to housing and housing regulation.

The candidate moves smoothly between strategy, policy, and execution, translates national and regional developments into locally implementable policy, and enjoys sharing their knowledge. He or she is a strong discussion partner for the executive board, housing corporations, developers, social organizations, residents, fellow municipalities, and internal disciplines.

What You Bring

Desired Profile

The candidate is an experienced Housing/Volkshuisvesting Policy Advisor who quickly creates an overview, combines content and process, and delivers independent added value in a temporary assignment.

Demonstrable Education/Experience

Required Competencies

The suitable candidate is a connecting advisor with a keen eye for societal developments and a good understanding of social relations. They can translate complex issues into feasible solutions and advise executives persuasively. They easily find their way within self-organization and have the ability to work and build independently and collaboratively.

The candidate is:

Offer

You will work with a team of enthusiastic colleagues within the spatial domain and can count on a good work-life balance. We also reward your commitment and performance with an attractive salary and appealing extras. Our employment conditions at a glance:

• The objective of the assignment is twofold: (1) the timely and administratively sound realization of the most important housing products and processes, and (2) ensuring knowledge, working methods, network, and dossier continuity for transfer upon succession. Candidate: Initiates and coordinates the process to arrive at an integral and implementable housing program, including planning, participation/consultation, administrative decision-making, and connection with relevant municipal policy fields.
• Advises the management, the executive board, and, if necessary, the municipal council, and independently prepares executive and council documents for this purpose.
• Initiates and coordinates the preparation and updating of the housing ordinance, including the mandatory urgency regulation and alignment with regional agreements and national legislation.
• Directs the housing agenda and monitors the progress, quality, and risks of housing tasks. Ensures policy monitoring and evaluation of housing programs.
• Works effectively with housing corporations, developers, and social partners on housing projects and livability issues.
• Identifies and analyzes developments in the housing market, affordability, sustainability, housing for the elderly, starter homes, and special target groups.
• Contributes to regional collaborations and agreements regarding housing.
• Represents the municipality in external consultations and networks and actively contributes to the establishment and translation of regional housing agreements within the SRBT.
• Actively transfers knowledge, context, network, and working methods to the permanent successor. Guides a colleague in completing the "Space for Growth" trajectory.
• The candidate ensures that an approved program and an approved ordinance are delivered by July 1, 2027, at the latest. By July 1, 2027, there will be: A housing program approved by the municipality that complies with legal requirements and is aligned with relevant internal and external partners.
• Also, a housing ordinance including an urgency regulation.
• An administrative and official planning with milestones, decision-making moments, dependencies, and risks for both trajectories, which will be kept up-to-date during the assignment.
• Decision-ready executive and council proposals and other administrative documents necessary for the timely and careful approval of the mentioned products.
• A thorough handover plan for permanent succession with at least: dossier status, planning, administrative points of attention, important contacts and core consultations, recurring processes, relevant laws and regulations, and outstanding actions, so that the successor can continue the portfolio independently.
• HBO or WO work and thinking level. A completed education in Public Administration, Urban Planning, Social Geography, Spatial Planning, or Real Estate.
• Minimum of 5 years of experience as a Housing/Volkshuisvesting Policy Advisor, preferably within a municipal organization.
• Experience with drafting or updating a housing vision, housing program, housing ordinance, implementation agenda, or comparable strategic housing product.
• Current knowledge of relevant laws and regulations, including at least the Act to Strengthen Housing Regulation, Housing Act 2014, Housing Corporation Act, and Environmental Act, and their impact on municipal housing policy.
• Experience with administrative advisory services and writing clear, legally and policy-consistent executive and council proposals.
• Analytical, independent, and solution-oriented (also at a strategic level).
• Result- and collaboration-oriented (decisive).
• Connecting and possesses stakeholder management skills.
• Politically and administratively sensitive (acts appropriately and is decisive).
• Strong communicator (oral and written) and advisory skills (persuasive).
• Competitive fixed salary, depending on knowledge and experience.
• 25 vacation days and 8.33% holiday allowance.
• 7.55% 13th-month payment.
• Travel expenses reimbursement or lease car.
• Good pension scheme.
• Overtime arrangement: payment in salary or time off in lieu.
• The above applies to collaboration on a contract basis; freelance (ZZP) is also possible.
• Continuous challenging assignments in the spatial domain.
• Intensive and personal guidance.
• Opportunity to participate in a personal coaching program.
• Inspiring masterclasses.

Project details

• Start: flexible
• Location: Dongen, NL
• Languages: Dutch