Rent and tenancy agreement

Do you rent houses or apartments? As a landlord in the Netherlands you have to observe several rules and obligations. Different rules apply to different types of housing.

Rules for house rentals

Landlords must keep to, for instance:

• the tenancy agreement must be in writing and must include maintenance rules, the date on which the rent will be increased each year, and house rules.
• rental protection (in Dutch), a landlord cannot simply terminate the rent.
• temporary letting of a property (in Dutch) is allowed in exceptional cases.
• the rental price, based on the rent points system. Please note the current amounts (in Dutch). Find out the maximum rent that can be charged with the Rent Check of the Rent Tribunal (Huurcommissie).
• price ceiling (in Dutch) for social housing and mid-priced housing
• rent review, increasing or decreasing the rent (in Dutch)
• maintenance and charges for services (in Dutch). For example major maintenance, such as exterior painting, is always the landlord’s responsibility. Charges for services that are part of the rent, for example furniture if you rent out furnished housing, are always for the landlord. For utilities it depends whether the contract is an all in or a base rent contract.
• landlords-tenants consultation
• prevention of housing discrimination, you cannot refuse to let a dwelling to someone based on, for example, their origin, disability, or sexual orientation (in Dutch)

You must keep to the rules of the Good Landlordship Act (in Dutch, scroll down for explanatory videos in several languages).

Rental permit

Some municipalities have a rental regulation. It may state that you must have a rental permit (in Dutch) to rent out living space. With a rental permit, municipalities can impose additional requirements on landlords, such as a fair rent and timely maintenance of the property.

Short stay

Short-term rental, or short stay, is possible if the municipality has designated your home for the purpose of lodging. The rules for short-term rental differ for each municipality. Check with your municipality to see if short-term rental is allowed (in Dutch).

Disputes

If you have a dispute with tenants or their representatives that cannot be solved amicably, you can take it to the Rent Tribunal (Huurcommissie, in Dutch).