Dutch Banks Said to Be Taxed $435 Million to Cut House Cost

The Netherlands will levy a special tax on its banks to raise 300 million euros ($435 million), enabling it to cut the duty on house transactions in an effort to revive the housing market.

The Dutch government will today decide to reduce the transaction tax to 2 percent from 6 percent for one year, according to two people familiar with the matter. They declined to be identified because the plan hasn’t been made public.