Working at VanWonen as a Market and Data Analyst

At a time when the real estate market is undergoing constant transformation, market research plays an important role in understanding the complex dynamics of the market. And is therefore essential in decision-making. Robert Mackaaij and Roxanne Mulder work at VanWonen as market and data analysts. They share a common goal - to identify the trends and gain insights into the housing market. Information that is not only meant for internal use but is also shared with a wider audience. Let’s take a peek into their work.

Expertise-based focus

They each have their own area of focus, from which they create value for VanWonen by identifying trends and developments in the housing market. Robert’s main focus is on market developments and macro-economic aspects. “The (housing market) economy combined with the institutional investor market - that’s my area of focus and expertise. This also stems from my work history. Over 1.5 years ago, I made the switch to VanWonen. Now I perform analyses on the entire process: from acquisition to sale, and I provide the necessary market scans for investment and sales proposals.”
Roxanne, on the other hand, provides insight into the demographics and demand from within the housing market. “My experience, working for housing associations and research firms, has given me a broader view of the housing market. I delve into current themes that affect the housing market. By combining actual data with experience from the field, we can paint a complete picture of the housing market. And can therefore find solutions that match the demand,” Roxanne shares about her approach.
Robert adds: “Indeed, our role is much more than merely presenting figures. We translate data into a strategic vision that VanWonen uses to keep developing in line with the prevailing market.” 

Agile approach

As an area developer, VanWonen wants to create homes and living environments for the healthiest generations. “The more complete the picture of the housing market, the better we as an organisation can anticipate trends in the housing market to further strengthen this vision,” says Roxanne. “Together, we produce market scans that are used as independent market tests in investment proposals. We provide solicited but also unsolicited advice throughout the development process. Together with the local market knowledge of our project teams, this leads to well-considered decisions. Our contribution is not limited to our internal process. We also provide insights that are used in meetings with collaboration partners, such as municipalities, to justify land prices and housing types based on the actual data.” 
This agile VanWonen approach allows insights to be translated directly into actions. “It also underlines the importance of the analyses we make. Especially in view of today’s market conditions, which are constantly changing. This is how we, in our work, adapt to the trends. Roxanne searches for new (public) market data and I recently developed an economy and housing market dashboard to give colleagues monthly updates on the latest market developments. We are also working on optimising our market scans. This is how we improve the analyses and create more and more insights to make ever better investment decisions for our projects.” 

Market and Research Publications

In the coming period, Robert and Roxanne will give us behind-the-scenes peeks into their work, and shine their light on various topics that are relevant to the housing market. Starting next week, they will kick off a series on the theme of Affordability. What exactly does affordable mean? Is it different from one region to another? And what are the differences between Dutch households? 
“We do not only want to offer insights, but also engage in conversations with others in the industry. Together, we can create a broader vision of the future of the housing market and keep developing healthy living environments for future generations,” Roxanne concludes.