Buying a House in The Netherlands? We compare the best real estate agent in in the Netherlands.

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How to Buy a house in The Netherlands

Buying a house in the Netherlands can be an exciting yet challenging journey, but partnering with a reputable real estate agent can simplify the process. They can handle administrative work, help you find potential homes that meet your specific preferences and requirements and offer professional advice during property viewings and realistic valuations. Moreover, they can guide you through the complex legal and administrative procedures involved in buying a house, ensuring a smooth and stress-free experience. With their expertise, you can navigate the Dutch housing market with confidence and ease, find your dream home, negotiate a fair price, and make informed decisions.

> 7 things to look for choosing a real estate agent.

Additional costs when buying a house in The Netherlands

Real estate agents charge brokerage in return for the accompaniment of finding your house. Brokerage fees are mostly a percentage of the purchase price of your new house. Real estate agents use a no cure no pay regulation, which means you don’t have to pay the estate agent until the contract for your new house is signed.

We made an overview of the costs of buying a house with the use of a real estate agent included.

Costs of buying a house Cost including VAT Example (House € 300.000,-)
Transfer tax 2% of purchase price € 6000,-
Mortgage adviser € 2500,- € 2500,-
Application for NHG 0,7% of the purchase price € 2100,-
Notary € 1000,- € 1000,-
Taxation € 450,- € 450,-
Architectural inspection € 375,- € 375,-
Mover € 1250,- € 1250,-
Real estate agent € 2200,- € 2200,-
Total Depending on the purchase price € 15875,-

In addition, there are various options in terms of the costs of a real estate agent. Buying a house will not cost you any additional money, but it will cost you a lot of time. Moreover, you are unfamiliar with the sales brokers, while a real estate agent often knows the sales brokers. Another pro of a real estate agent is that he or she has experience in negotiating. Want to know the tasks of a real estate agent in The Netherlands? Click here!

How to buy a House step-by-step

Step 1. Decide if this is the best moment to buy a house in The Netherlands

Many people want to buy a house in the Netherlands. This comes along with advantages and disadvantages. You have to decide if you are willing to take this step. An important question when buying a house is: “Can I afford to buy a house?” and “Is it the right moment to buy a house?”. If the housing market is under pressure, having patience is probably a good choice. You also have to decide if it fits your plans.

Step 2. Decide if you should sell your current house first

When you already have a house, you must first decide whether you should sell the current house first. Most people sell their homes at the same time they buy another home or around this period. If you don’t do this, take a good look at how the housing market moves. When house prices rise quickly and you sold your house first, you run the risk of not having enough money for your new house. The same applies the other way around, if you expect the house price to fall and you first sell your current home, you have leeway to buy the new home.

> Better to sell your house or rent out your house

Step 3. Set an appointment with a mortgage advisor

How much do you want to spend on your new home? This depends on two things. First; how big your savings are and second; how much mortgage can you get. The first step is to talk with a mortgage advisor to see what kind of mortgage is suitable for you. The first meeting with a mortgage advisor is usually free of charge, so make sure to check it out! A mortgage adviser has sorted this out hundreds of times and can help you quickly. Hereby you know exactly the amount of your mortgage and at what mortgage interest rate.

Step 4. Decide where you want to live in The Netherlands

Before you buy a house, you should research where you would like to live in the Netherlands. When you have decided on which place you want to live, it is useful to find several neighbourhoods in the specific city that suit your preferences. Set requirements for yourself on what kind of facilities there should be in the area of these neighbourhoods. For instance, should there be a primary school nearby? And should the shops be within walking distance? Ask yourself these kinds of questions and write them down. The search for a suitable neighbourhood goes hand-in-hand with your budget. It is recommended that you know your budget before looking very specifically for a neighbourhood. Afterwards, you can research what the house prices are in a particular neighbourhood.

Step 5. Find a real estate agent that fits you

Ask yourself if you need help from a real estate agent. Still not sure? Click on your preferences in the tool here on this website. Based on your preferences, we compare the best real estate agents in each city. Decide for yourself whether you want to contact 1 or 2 brokers. After the preferences have been noted, we select the real estate agents based on your wishes. These real estate agents will contact you so you can decide which real estate agent can help you the best with the search for your perfect home. This is completely free and without any obligation.

Step 6. View potential houses in your neighbourhood

The real estate agent is now familiar with your housing requirements and has drawn up a search profile for you. The real estate agent will send new houses to your mailbox. With your unique search profile, you will profit from receiving new houses every day by email. The new properties in these emails will not be posted online until a few days later. When a potential new house for you comes by, just ask the real estate agent if he can make an appointment for you. If you’re not able to view the house yourself, ask the real estate agent to go for you.

Step 7. Make an offer on the house you are interested in

Have you fallen in love with a house? Then discuss the value of the particular house with your real estate agent. The real estate agent advises you on the value of the house. If you want to offer more yourself, it is your own choice. The buying agent will advise with an objective opinion. When you find it worth more yourself, it is often based on emotion. Your real estate agent will place the offer and conduct any negotiations with the other real estate agent. The moment your offer is accepted, you bought the house!

Step 8. Contact your mortgage advisor

Because you already know your mortgage, you need to inform your mortgage advisor about your decision to buy a particular house. The mortgage advisor can then ensure that a mortgage loan can be taken out.

Step 9. Take out mortgage

Taking out a mortgage needs to be done before you move into your house. The purchase is finalized when the mortgage lender transfers the money to the seller and the key transfer has taken place. The mortgage advisor will help you to complete this as quickly as possible.

Step 10. Making the purchase agreement and signing it

You (the buyer) and the house seller will have to agree on several things. For this particular reason, two deeds are drawn up. The first one is the purchase agreement, which contains agreements about the purchase and sale of the house. In the purchase agreement, mention such things as the transfer date, what the buyer wants to take over, the deposit and what the resolutive conditions are.

This purchase deed must be signed by both parties. After that, both parties have a statutory cooling-off period of three working days.

During the legal reflection period, the seller and buyer may unilaterally dissolve, this can be done without giving any reason. There are no consequences for this.

The second deed is drawn up when the statutory reflection period has expired. This will happen when the required funding is available. A draft version is first sent for both deeds so you can go through this with your real estate agent. It is the duty of the real estate agent that the agreements are carefully checked and amended if necessary.

Tip 11. Complete the purchase of your new home

When the statutory reflection period has expired, the resolutive conditions apply. When everything is completed, the deed of delivery can be signed. Before you sign this, you go through the house together with the real estate agent and the seller. This way it can be checked whether everything has been left as agreed. You are only the house owner when the deed of delivery has been signed and the notary has registered the deed of delivery in the land registry. The bill of settlement is also processed during the signing of the deed of delivery. After you have become the new homeowner, you can immediately move or renovate your belongings if necessary. Take into account applying for the correct permits for a major renovation.

Need help with all the steps of buying a house in The Netherlands from A to Z? Click here HuisAssist

Plans to buy a house in The Netherlands? We developed a tool designed to compare the best real estate agents for you everywhere in the Netherlands. It can save you a lot of time and costs. Make sure to fill in your wishes in the tool!

If you consider living in The Netherlands, but don’t know how to do it. Here is a list of 7 common mistakes expats are making.

How does it work?

Checklist

Select your preferences

Click on the red button and select your preferences.

deep-learning

Personalized intake and selection

We will select the number of brokers you want at your preferences.

contact

Real estate agents get in touch

The selected real estate agents will contact you without obligation.

contract

You choose the right agent

Finally, you choose the real estate agent that best suits you!

FAQ

See below our frequently asked questions about the services provided by Juiste Makelaar.

What does Juiste Makelaar do?

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We are a real estate agent comparison service active throughout the Netherlands. Based on your preferences and our unique broker database we match you to the best broker for your situation. Before we put you in contact, we will contact you to complete the matching. This way there are no surprises. Then you will receive the selected brokers by email and they will contact you themselves. Then you choose the best real estate agent for your situation.

How do you compare real estate agents?

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In the application we ask a number of preferences which we combine with the available broker data. After you have filled in this information we always contact you personally so we can complete the whole comparison.

Why is comparing real estate agents necessary?

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In the Netherlands there are more than 9,000 active real estate agents. This makes it difficult to determine which estate agent is best suited for your situation. Which agent uses a good buying or selling strategy and what costs do the different brokers charge. Have you become curious? Compare right away!

Can I compare real estate agents anywhere in the Netherlands?

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Yes, we can help you find a suitable real estate agent throughout the Netherlands. This is partly due to our many partners, so we can help you as best we can anywhere in the Netherlands.

What is a normal fee for a real estate agent in the Netherlands?

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The average sales commission of a real estate agent in the Netherlands is between 1 and 1.25 percent. However, this naturally depends on what you agree with the real estate agent in question. You can think of a bonus agreement or a different set of tasks.

What happens after I complete the equation?

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Immediately after filling out your preferences, you will receive a confirmation. After that we will contact you by phone, unless you prefer to be contacted in another way. When everything is to your satisfaction, the two selected real estate agents will contact you. Finally, you decide with which real estate agent you have the best connection and with whom you want to work.

Can I also get a price list from real estate agents?

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No, because all real estate agents in the Netherlands have a different working method, it is not yet possible to send a standard price list. This is partly due to various aspects, such as that you can agree performance bonuses with estate agents so that the standard commission is lower, or that you carry out a number of tasks yourself. Other reasons for not being able to give a standard price list are: the sales ranks of agent firms, the location of your home, quality of the real estate agent and extra services they  offer.

Is this application through Juiste Makelaar free of charge?

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Yes it is! This application is completely free of charge for you. We are happy to put you in contact with the selected real estate agents free of charge and without any obligation. At the moment you are finally helped with buying or selling your home, we ask a small fee to the broker, which means no costs to you.