Brussels has done something few Western European capitals can claim over the past three decades: grow. Since its mid-1990s population trough, the city is up roughly 32%, driven by an expanding international workforce.
More than 460,000 non-Belgian nationals —37% of the region's 1.25 million residents — now call Brussels home, pulled in by NATO, the EU institutions and a dense cluster of multinational employers.
That growth has been distributed unevenly across the city's nineteen communes. Evere has felt it most: between 2020 and 2025 its population grew 7.6%, more than double the regional average, per Statbel. The reason is on the map. Evere sits minutes from NATO headquarters, the new Belgian Defence headquarters (under construction nearby) and Proximus's Brussels campus, with the airport a short drive away and the EU institutions five kilometers south. Together, these hubs anchor one of the region's largest job clusters, all a stone's throw from Evere.
For investors, that geography means rental demand that isn't going away. New-build permits in the Brussels-Capital Region collapsed 63% in the first months of 2025 versus a year earlier, and developers warn of a structural supply crunch pushing both purchase and rental prices higher.
CIB's Huurbarometer shows private rents rising for six consecutive years, up roughly 5% in both 2024 and 2025 alone. The arithmetic is straightforward: a fast-growing, high-income tenant base chasing a shrinking supply of quality rental stock.
It is this dynamic that has put Colonel's Corner, a new-build residential development in Evere from Antonissen Development Group, on the radar of investors.
The project comprises 36 apartments (one, two and three bedrooms) with abundant natural light, generous private terraces and a shared garden. Entry prices start at 315,000 euros, with Belgium's reduced 6% VAT rate potentially applicable — worth up to 77,000 euros off the purchase price, lowering the entry threshold and strengthening net yield from day one.
The building is engineered for today's energy-cost environment: gas-free, heated via geothermal heat pumps, with high-performance insulation and green roofs. For landlords, that means lower operating costs and a building that already meets high standards other stock will eventually need to retrofit for.
Location compounds the case. Evere station is an eight-minute walk, the Meiser tram stop four minutes, Cinquantenaire park ten minutes away and central Brussels roughly twenty. Directly adjacent, the former RTBF and VRT site is being redeveloped into Mediapark, a 10-hectare park anchored by a new media hub, shops, schools and sports facilities.
The first buildings are already nearing completion, with the wider district's housing and public spaces continuing through 2030 — a visible catalyst next door rather than a promise in a masterplan brochure.
None of this matters if the asset becomes a second job. Antonissen Development Group has structured Colonel's Corner as hands-off, with rental management through partner Estero: positioning the unit for the target tenant, screening candidates for solvency and reliability, drafting the lease, following up on indexation and payments, coordinating maintenance, and reporting monthly — with the owner retaining final say on who moves in.
For an investor abroad, or one who simply doesn't want to manage a Brussels rental from a distance, that is the difference between owning a property and holding a portfolio asset.
Antonissen Development Group is not a newcomer betting on Evere. Active since 2009, the Antwerp-headquartered developer has delivered more than 1,250 units across Belgium and Luxembourg, with more than 1,100 currently in development.
The broader thesis is familiar to anyone tracking Brussels real estate: a capital adding residents faster than it can build for them, anchored by institutions that aren't relocating, in a commune getting its own visible upgrade next door. Colonel's Corner offers a direct position in that thesis, at a Belgian entry price that remains modest against other EU capital cities.
Colonel's Corner at a glance
Location: Evere, Brussels — Kolonel Bourgstraat 105b, 4 min from Meiser tram, 8 min from Evere station.
Units: 36 apartments (1–3 bedrooms) plus ground-floor retail.
Entry price: From €315,000.
Fiscal: Reduced 6% VAT rate possible — up to €77,000 saving (conditions apply).
Sustainability: Gas-free, geothermal heat pumps, green roofs.
Management: Full rental management via partner Estero.
Developer: Antonissen Development Group — active since 2009, 1,250+ apartments delivered and 1,100+ in development across Belgium and Luxembourg.
More information at www.antonissen.com
