From the beginning of the 20th century Dutch housing got a lot better by the housing corporations, that built good houses for the poorer part of the population. This is a typical project from the 1920s. Oldenzaal was in the textile industry heartland Twente in the Netherlands. To attract workers, housing became better. At the back there would even be a garden so the people could grow their vegetables to save on spendings.

Until well after WWII however in the larger cities in the west of the country, slums were quite usual.