How to buy a house in the Netherlands 2026: complete buyer process for expats

Table of contents

Yes, and there are no nationality restrictions. EU/EEA citizens, knowledge migrants, family-permit holders and other legal residents can all buy property in the Netherlands. Non-residents can technically buy too, though most mortgage lenders will not lend to someone who does not live and work in the country.

Who can get a mortgage

• EU/EEA and Swiss citizens: same treatment as Dutch citizens once you have a BSN and Dutch income history.
• Knowledge migrants and other permit holders: usually need at least 6 months of Dutch payslips and either a permanent contract or a minimum residence permit duration (many lenders want at least 5 years remaining).
• Self-employed / ZZP: typically need 1 to 3 years of business accounts.
• Recent arrivals: some specialist expat lenders will bridge the gap with an employer guarantee, but the pool is smaller and rates a bit higher.

See our expat mortgage brokers guide for the lender comparison and the exact document checklist.

1. Check your budget and mortgage capacity. Talk to a mortgage broker (or use our housing affordability calculator) to get a maximum-borrowing figure. Add 4 to 6 percent for kosten koper on top.
2. Hire a buyer's agent (aankoopmakelaar). Not required, but in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam and Den Haag it materially improves your win rate and protects you from overpaying. Fees €2,000 to €5,000 fixed or 1 to 2 percent of the price.
3. Search on Funda and view homes. Funda is the dominant Dutch listing site. Set alerts, respond within hours in the Randstad, and be ready to view within 1 to 3 days of a listing going live.
4. Place a sealed bid. You submit your bid through the seller's agent, usually within a couple of days of viewing. Include or waive conditions (financing, structural survey) depending on how aggressive your offer needs to be.
5. Sign the purchase agreement (koopovereenkomst). Once your bid is accepted, both parties sign a written contract. The seller's notary usually drafts it, but you can ask your own notary to review it.
6. Use the 3-day cooling-off period (bedenktijd). A statutory 3 day window, starting the day after you receive the signed contract. Use it to arrange a structural survey and confirm final mortgage approval.
7. Finalise the mortgage. Your broker submits the full application. The lender orders a valuation (taxatie), checks documents, and issues a binding offer. In parallel, the notary prepares both the transfer deed (leveringsakte) and the mortgage deed (hypotheekakte).
8. Complete at the notary. Both parties sign at the notary's office, funds are transferred, keys are handed over and the notary registers the change of ownership at the Kadaster (Land Registry).

"Kosten koper" (buyer costs, often abbreviated k.k. on Funda listings) is the label for everything you pay on top of the sale price. For existing homes it lands in the 4 to 6 percent range. A worked example for a €400,000 home:

Mortgage advice fees and the NHG premium are tax-deductible in the year you incur them, which softens the bill. Notary and transfer tax are not deductible for the buyer.

Transfer tax (overdrachtsbelasting)

• 2% if you will live in the home yourself as your main residence.
• 0% starters exemption if you are aged 18 to 35, buying your first home to live in yourself, and the price is under €555,000 in 2026 (up from €525,000 in 2025). Applies once, per person. Requires signing the "Declaration for low transfer tax rate" at the notary.
• 8% (new in 2026, down from 10.4%) for homes you will not live in yourself: second homes, investment properties and buy-to-let.
• Newly built homes (nieuwbouw) already include 21% VAT in the developer price and pay 0% transfer tax.

Sources: Government.nl transfer tax rates and the Belastingdienst.

NHG (Nationale Hypotheek Garantie) in 2026

• NHG limit €470,000 in 2026 (up from €450,000 in 2025).
• €498,200 limit if the loan includes energy-saving measures (energiebesparende voorzieningen).
• Premium 0.4% of the loan, one-off, paid at completion. Tax-deductible in the year you pay it.
• Lenders typically drop the mortgage rate by 0.4 to 0.6 percentage points when NHG is in place.
• NHG protects you against a forced sale in case of job loss, disability or divorce.

Almost always worth taking NHG if you are borrowing under the limit. Source: NHG official 2026 limit.

In most Dutch cities the asking price ("vraagprijs") is a starting point, not a ceiling. In the Randstad it is standard to bid above it. Bidding is sealed: you submit your offer to the seller's agent by a deadline, without knowing what others have bid.

Typical overbid ranges (indicative)

• Amsterdam, Utrecht: 5-15% above asking is normal; homes near stations or in hot postcodes can go 20%+.
• Rotterdam, Den Haag: 3-10% above asking on average.
• Second-tier cities (Groningen, Eindhoven, Nijmegen, Maastricht): 0-5%, sometimes at or below asking.
• Cooling markets: some suburbs and villages see homes selling at or slightly below asking.

Conditions in your bid

Your bid can include "ontbindende voorwaarden" (dissolving conditions) that let you back out later. The most common are:

• Financing condition (voorbehoud van financiering): lets you cancel if you cannot secure the mortgage within an agreed window (usually 4 to 6 weeks).
• Structural survey condition (voorbehoud bouwkundige keuring): lets you cancel if the survey reveals problems above a threshold amount.
• Energy label condition: less common, but can be added for older homes.

Each condition weakens your offer against buyers who bid without them. Waiving the financing condition means you owe 10% penalty if your mortgage falls through: only do it if you have a signed mortgage offer already. In a tight market, a strong buyer's agent will help you calibrate which conditions to drop.

Purchase agreement (koopovereenkomst)

Once your bid is accepted, both parties sign a written purchase agreement. The seller's agent or a notary typically drafts it. It specifies the price, transfer date, conditions, and usually a 10% security deposit paid into the notary's account within 4 to 6 weeks (either in cash or via a bank guarantee).

3-day cooling-off period (bedenktijd)

A statutory 3 day cooling-off period starts the day after you receive the signed contract. During those 3 days you can withdraw without penalty and without giving a reason. Sellers do not get a cooling-off period; only buyers of homes for personal use. Use the window to arrange the structural survey and confirm mortgage approval.

Completion at the notary (notaris)

The notary is the legal mediator. They verify that the seller has the right to sell, check the Kadaster (Land Registry) for encumbrances, draft the transfer deed (leveringsakte) and the mortgage deed (hypotheekakte), and register the change of ownership afterwards. Both parties sign at the notary's office on completion day. Funds move through the notary's escrow account, keys are handed over, and the property is yours.

Bouwtechnische keuring (structural survey)

Not legally required, but strongly recommended for older homes or anything you have doubts about. A qualified inspector checks foundation, roof, damp, wiring and plumbing. Costs €300 to €600. Report length is typically 20 to 40 pages with a repair-cost estimate. In a competitive market you may not have time to arrange one before bidding; a common workaround is to include a survey clause in your bid (see the previous section).

Energy label (energielabel)

Every home for sale in the Netherlands must have a registered energy label from A++ (best) to G (worst). It affects three things directly:

• Your monthly energy bill: a G-label home can cost €200-€400/month more in gas and electricity than an A-label equivalent.
• Mortgage capacity: NHG allows a higher limit (€498,200 vs €470,000 in 2026) if the loan finances energy-saving measures.
• Interest rates: several lenders offer sharper rates for A/B-label homes, or discounts on green mortgages.

Homes with G or F labels are cheaper up front but usually need insulation, better glazing and sometimes a heat pump. Some of that can be financed with a green add-on to your mortgage. Newly built homes are almost always A or A++.

For the ownership-side insurances you will need once you own the home, see our Dutch home insurance guide covering opstalverzekering, inboedelverzekering and aansprakelijkheidsverzekering.

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