There are great deals of things to think about when you lease lodging. This consists of making sure you are not paying too much in terms of lease, a deposit or service expenses. The Landlords (Good Practices) Act came into force on 1 July 2023. This act presented brand-new guidelines and upgraded some old guidelines. It's crucial to know your rights and responsibilities. So follow this step-by-step strategy when you rent lodging.

Step 1: check how much the rent, deposit, service expenses and mediation costs are

Rent

Check whether the lodging you want to rent is classed as social housing or if it is private-sector rental. This is an important difference, due to the fact that different rights and obligations use to each type. If you are going to be leasing accommodation in 2024 and the basic rent is EUR879.66 or less, the lodging is considered to be social housing. Social housing has a rent ceiling, which is computed utilizing a points system. If you rent lodging in 2024 and the basic rent is above EUR879.66, the accommodation is thought about to be a private-sector rental. There is no lease ceiling for private-sector accommodation.

Check whether the lease matches the quality of the accommodation by running the Rent Check.

Rent Check self-contained lodgings Rent Check shared lodgings

If you are paying excessive, ask your property owner to lower the rent. If you can't reach an agreement with your property owner, get in touch with the rent tribunal (Huurcommissie).

Please note: if you are residing in a private-sector rental, ask the lease tribunal to examine your beginning rent within six months of your first payment. If you reside in social housing, you can ask the lease tribunal to inspect the lease you are paying at any time.

In some municipalities, property owners require a rental permit to be able to rent lodging. Conditions may be connected to the authorization, such as how much the rent can be. If this holds true, you can likewise ask the municipality to evaluate your lease.

Deposit

For tenancy contracts dated 1 July 2023 onwards, the maximum deposit a landlord can charge is 2 months' standard lease. When the occupancy agreement has ended, you will in principle get your deposit back within 2 week. But if you still owe your proprietor money, they can subtract this from your deposit. In that case they must repay the staying deposit within 30 days.

Your property manager can only withhold your deposit to cover the following:

- unpaid lease;

• service costs;
• damage to the accommodation that the occupant must cover;
• energy efficiency charge (in Dutch: energieprestatievergoeding, EPV).
  
  Service costs
  
  Your landlord can just charge you actual service costs that have been incurred. They can not charge more and keep the difference.
  
  Service expenses include:
  
  - cleaning expenses;
• costs of lighting common areas;
• tasks performed by a caretaker.
  
  Gas, water and electrical power do not fall under service costs. You pay these expenses independently.
  
  You pay service costs monthly, on top of the basic lease. Each year your property manager will supply you with an overview of the service costs charged to you. This will show you:
  
  - which costs your property owner has actually incurred;
• just how much of these expenses you have paid;
• whether you have paid excessive or too little;
• whether you will get cash back or need to pay more.
  
  If you have not gotten an overview of service costs, or if the summary is inaccurate, get in touch with the rent tribunal or your municipality.
  
  Mediation costs may just be charged to one party
  
  If your proprietor utilizes a rental agency, your property owner pays the mediation fees. The agency can not ask you to pay mediation fees too. Mediation costs are sometimes called administration, contract or firm costs. If you yourself use a firm or intermediary to find lodging, you will need to pay their fees yourself.
  
  Step 2: check your tenancy agreement and the info provided by your proprietor
  
  Tenancy contracts dated 1 July 2023 onwards should be in writing. If you make oral contracts with your landlord, your proprietor must verify these arrangements in writing. Your proprietor needs to also supply you with details in composing about:
  
  - how the lodging can be utilized;
• when your property owner can go into the lodging (just with your consent, unless there is an emergency);.
• the different types of occupancy arrangement and the associated occupant security and rental rate defense;.
• what you can do if the accommodation needs repair work;.
• who you can get in touch with if you have questions about your lodging;.
• who you can call if you can't fix an issue with your landlord (community reporting workplace, lease tribunal or district court);.
• how much you require to pay as a deposit and how it will be returned;.
• service expenses (an overview of service costs charged must be supplied every year).
  
  If your occupancy contract began before 1 July 2023, you will receive this additional info by 30 June 2024 at the most recent.
  
  Extra info for European labour migrants
  
  If you have originated from a European nation to momentarily operate in the Netherlands, and your employer provides you with accommodation, your company needs to provide you information about your lodging in a language you comprehend. This does not use to the occupancy contract, however. The tenancy agreement can be in Dutch.
  
  Your tenancy agreement should also be separate from your employment agreement. This indicates that you do not need to vacate the accommodation if your work ends. This only applies to tenancy contracts dated 1 July 2023 or later on.
  
  Step 3: inspect if you are entitled to housing benefit
  
  You might be entitled to housing benefit. You can check this on toeslagen.nl.
  
  Step 4: do something about it if you can not fix a problem with your proprietor
  
  If you have a concern with your landlord and can't fix it, there are various strategies you can take.
  
  Involve the lease tribunal
  
  If you are leasing social housing, and you do not agree with the amount of rent you are paying, a rent increase or the level of maintenance, you can call the rental tribunal.
  
  If you rent private-sector lodging, and disagree with your property manager's yearly rent boost, or a lease increase following enhancements to your accommodation, call the lease tribunal. You can also ask the rent tribunal to assess your beginning rent. You need to do this within 6 months of the start of the occupancy.
  
  The rent tribunal is an independent and unbiased dispute arbitrator. Any choices it takes are lawfully binding for both tenants and landlords. If you can not take the dispute to the rent tribunal, you can take it to the district court.
  
  Reporting an issue to the town
  
  Since 1 January 2024, every municipality has a reporting workplace where tenants and those searching for lodging can report issues with landlords.
  
  If a property owner breaches among the rules in the (Good Practices) Act, the municipality must act. Here are some examples. A landlord remains in breach of the guidelines if they:
  
  - do not offer you with a written tenancy agreement or written information about the tenancy;.
• charge you unjustified service costs or deposit expenses;.
• discriminate against you or intimidate you. Intimidation consists of threatening to end the tenancy contract or cut off your gas, water or electricity if you grumble.
  
  If a property owner is discovered to be in breach of the rules in the Landlords (Good Practices) Act (or other guidelines), the town can do a variety of things, including:
  
  - issue a main warning;.
• issue a fine; or.
• in extreme cases, take over management of the accommodation.
  
  If you have a complaint that is not connected to the Landlords (Good Practices) Act, your municipality can put you in touch with the best organisation.
  
  Report discrimination
  
  Your property owner is not enabled to discriminate against you. To prevent discrimination (conscious or unconscious), proprietors need to mention in writing how they pick their occupants. When advertising lodging, landlords should include info on how renters will be picked. Landlords must explain to not successful prospects why they were not selected.
  
  If you presume discrimination, contact the reporting office of your town. You can likewise get in touch with an anti-discrimination service (ADV). These services provide independent advice to individuals who report discrimination or have questions about discrimination. You can also call:
  
  the Netherlands Institute for Human Rights (+31 (0 )30 888 3 888/ info@mensenrechten.nl); or. the cops.
  
  Brochure with additional details
  
  Most tenants more than happy with their proprietor. But sometimes things do not go as expected and issues can arise. The Landlords (Good Practices) Act offers occupants protection and gives property owners clearness about what's enabled and what's not permitted. This sales brochure offers extra details about the law. The brochure is offered in Dutch, English, Bulgarian, Polish, Romanian and Spanish.