House Hunter Blog
Stories, data, and practical guidance on the Dutch rental market — from the team watching 1,000+ housing sites so you don't have to.
June 13, 2026
The WOZ-cap is why that tiny Amsterdam apartment may still be a regulated rental
Internationals keep assuming a central Amsterdam flat is automatically deregulated. The WOZ-cap means it often isn't — and that changes what you can do about your rent.
By Mason Jongejan
June 11, 2026
If an Amsterdam 'rental' charges tourist tax, it's probably not a normal home
Amsterdam keeps raising its tourist tax. If a landlord asks you to pay it on a long-term home, that's not a cost detail — it's a signal the place isn't a normal tenancy at all.
By Mason Jongejan
June 10, 2026
The ROZ Contract Is Not Dutch Rental Law — And Internationals Sign It Like It Is
Half the renters we help assume 'standard contract' means 'legally correct.' It doesn't. The ROZ model is a private template — and Dutch law overrides it every time the two clash.
By Mason Jongejan
June 8, 2026
Short Stay in the Netherlands: Why 'Expat-Friendly' Often Means 'Rights-Free'
Short stay is a narrow exception for genuinely temporary accommodation — not a contract type landlords can slap onto a normal apartment to escape Dutch rental law.
By Mason Jongejan
June 6, 2026
A Hospita Contract Isn't a Normal Rental — and Internationals Keep Learning That the Hard Way
Renting a room in your landlord's own house feels like a cheaper version of a normal rental. Legally, it's a different animal — and the differences hit hardest in your first nine months.
By Mason Jongejan
June 4, 2026
The '3x the rent' rule excludes your vakantiegeld — that's why your applications keep dying
Most internationals do the income math too generously. The number that matters is your fixed gross monthly salary, vakantiegeld stripped out — and the screening systems know it.
By Mason Jongejan
May 31, 2026
Opkoopbescherming: why a recently bought apartment may not be legal to rent to you
If a landlord bought their place in the last four years in Amsterdam or Rotterdam, the rental you're about to sign for might not be legal at all. Two questions can save you a deposit.
By Mason Jongejan
May 27, 2026
Your Dutch landlord's two-month notice clause is probably worthless
A two-month opzegtermijn looks official on paper. In practice, Dutch law caps tenant notice at one month — and most landlords know it, even if they won't say so.
By Mason Jongejan
May 25, 2026
Summer sublets in NL: no landlord permission, no safe rental
Every May and June I see the same panic — internationals chasing 'room available July to September' posts. Here's why I tell them to walk away the moment the main tenant gets vague about permission.
By Mason Jongejan
May 24, 2026
Before you pay a deposit on a Dutch rental, spend €3 on a Kadaster owner check
A passport photo and a signed contract are not proof of anything in the Dutch rental market. The Kadaster is.
By Mason Jongejan
May 22, 2026
When a landlord asks for your BSN before you've even viewed the place, something is wrong
The BSN-before-rent demand sounds like standard screening. For anyone who just landed in the Netherlands, it's usually a paperwork loop the landlord either doesn't understand or is using to filter you out.
By Mason Jongejan
May 18, 2026
The energielabel is doing more to your rent than you think
Most internationals read the energielabel as a utility-cost footnote. In Dutch rental law it's also points on the WWS scoresheet — and those points decide what your landlord is allowed to charge.
By Mason Jongejan
May 16, 2026
A 'studio' with a shared kitchen is just a room — and Dutch law agrees with me
Internationals treat 'studio' like a marketing word. In the Netherlands it's a legal category — and getting it wrong costs renters hundreds of euros a month.
By Mason Jongejan
May 13, 2026
Huurtoeslag for shared housing: why most international students should budget for zero
If your kitchen or bathroom is shared, the math you did before flying to the Netherlands is probably wrong. Here's what we see in our inbox every week.
By Mason Jongejan
May 12, 2026
WoningNet Is Not Your Backup Plan: Why Inschrijfduur Quietly Decides Everything
Every week I talk to internationals who registered on WoningNet 'as a backup'. Here's why that strategy almost never works — and what to do instead.
By Mason Jongejan
May 11, 2026
'Guarantor accepted' is a trap for internationals — here's what Dutch landlords actually want
Most Dutch rental listings that say 'guarantor possible' actually mean 'Dutch guarantor with a BSN, a permanent contract, and a Dutch payslip'. If you don't check before you pay, you'll burn money and weeks.
By Mason Jongejan
May 10, 2026
Gestoffeerd vs Gemeubileerd in the Netherlands: Why 'Semi-Furnished' Is a Cost Warning, Not a Comfort Promise
Dutch landlords use 'gestoffeerd' as a legal-practical label, not a hospitality standard. If you treat it like 'semi-furnished' in the British or American sense, you'll end up buying floors, curtains and lamps the week you move in.
By Mason Jongejan
May 9, 2026
Antikraak in the Netherlands: stop comparing it to a cheap rental
Internationals keep emailing me asking whether antikraak is a smart way to dodge €1,800 rents. The honest answer is that you're not comparing the same product.
By Mason Jongejan
May 8, 2026
All-in huur is not convenience, it is a red flag — and internationals keep falling for it
If a Dutch landlord refuses to split rent into kale huur and service costs, you are not being offered convenience. You are being offered vagueness — and vagueness is expensive.
By Mason Jongejan
May 7, 2026
Three internationals on one Amsterdam lease? Ask for the woningdelen permit before you pay a cent
A landlord's verbal promise that three of you can share the flat is the single most common trap I see internationals fall into in Amsterdam. The paperwork behind that promise is either there, or it isn't.
By Mason Jongejan
May 6, 2026
Leegstandwet rentals: if the landlord can't show the permit, the 'temporary' contract is fiction
Internationals keep signing 'temporary' Dutch contracts labelled Leegstandwet. Nine times out of ten, nobody ever asks to see the permit — and that changes everything.
By Mason Jongejan
May 5, 2026
ZZP renting in the Netherlands in 2026: why your KvK extract is no longer enough
The Belastingdienst ended its lenient enforcement on false self-employment in January 2026, and it quietly broke the way landlords read freelance income. If you're a ZZP expat applying in Amsterdam, Utrecht or Rotterdam, an invoice stack and a KvK uittreksel won't cut it anymore.
By Mason Jongejan
May 3, 2026
The Diplomatenclausule Trap: Why Internationals Should Never Sign This Clause Blindly
It looks like one innocent paragraph in your Dutch rental contract. In reality, the diplomatic clause is one of the few legal routes a landlord has to push you out — and most expats sign it without noticing.
By Mason Jongejan
May 2, 2026
Municipal Taxes in Dutch Rentals: Which Bills Are Yours and Which Are Your Landlord's
Tenants pay the user taxes. Owners pay the owner taxes. A vague clause in your contract does not change that — and I keep seeing internationals reimburse bills they never owed.
By Mason Jongejan
May 1, 2026
Rent Increase Netherlands 2026: Why That May/June Letter Isn't Automatically Valid
Most internationals treat the annual rent increase letter as a done deal. It isn't. Here's what I tell every House Hunter user who forwards me one.
By Mason Jongejan
April 30, 2026
Bemiddelingskosten: Why That €400 'Contract Fee' Is Probably Illegal
The fee the agent calls 'administration' or 'contract costs' is usually double-charging. If you're an international tenant, stop treating it as part of moving to the Netherlands.
By Mason Jongejan
April 29, 2026
Servicekosten is an advance, not a second rent — ask for the statement before 1 July
Every June I watch the same pattern: expat tenants pay €150–€250 a month in 'service costs' they never see broken down. Dutch law says that breakdown has to land before 1 July. Use it.
By Mason Jongejan
April 28, 2026
The Huisvestingsvergunning Trap: Why That Perfect Rental Might Not Legally Be Yours
Amsterdam and Den Haag tightened the rules in 2025-2026. If you don't know whether your future address needs a permit, you're the one who pays when it goes wrong.
By Mason Jongejan
April 27, 2026
'Dutch speakers only' isn't a preference — it's usually illegal
Internationals keep scrolling past listings that say 'Dutch only' or 'no expats' like it's just how the market works. Under the AWGB and the Good Landlord Act, it mostly isn't — and that matters if you're hunting in Amsterdam, Utrecht or Rotterdam.
By Mason Jongejan
April 26, 2026
That '12-Month Contract' Your Dutch Landlord Offered You Is Probably Not What You Think
Since July 2024, a fixed end date is no longer the default in Dutch rentals — and a lot of the 'temporary' contracts landing in expat inboxes shouldn't legally exist.
By Mason Jongejan