Choosing a rental villa is one thing, but finding a suitable villa is another story. Because there is a large shortage of affordable rental properties, especially for people with a middle income it is difficult to find something. They earn too much for a social rental villa and displace each other in the free sector. Five tips for a successful search.
1. Social rental or free-sector housing: know where to look.
Rental housing is divided into a social rental and free sector housing. Maximum income applies to social rental housing: housing associations must make 80 percent of their offer available to households with an income below 36,165 euros. A maximum of 10 percent can go to incomes between 36,165 and 40,349 euros. Housing associations are free in the remaining 10 percent.
There are no legal rules for villas in the free sector
Gerard Scholten, rental law specialist, Tombow Advocaten
It helps to be registered with a housing corporation that offers social rental housing. You save points there every month, which can be important if there are several interested people in a house.
If you have a wider grant, you will end up in the free sector. There you often have to prove that you have more than a certain minimum income. Landlords can simply demand that you earn four or five times the monthly rent gross.
“There are no legal rules for villas in the free sector,” explains Gerard Scholten, rental law specialist at Tombow Advocaten in Utrecht. “Contract freedom makes it possible to set all kinds of requirements.”
2. Consult a broker to find a suitable rental property.
Take a look at a rental agent or view the options online and draw up a list of preferences. They will then start to find a suitable villa based on your budget. That can be a long-term matter, and therefore primarily an option for those who have the time.
Rental agents often work on a no cure, no pay basis. As long as they do not help you find a new villa, there are no costs. If a rental agent finds a match, it can be expensive. You then pay brokerage fees: a fee for administration, viewing and any help with drawing up the lease. It is not unusual for you to be charged once or even twice the monthly rent plus VAT.
Please note: they may only charge those costs if you are a client without a client. If the broker also works on behalf of the lessor, the costs may only be charged on there. This is because levying a double brokerage fee is prohibited.
3. Subscribe to automatic notifications.
That house has a large garden with a stone bicycle shed, two bedrooms and a fixed staircase to the attic so that all wishes were neatly ticked off. , And we have an unobstructed view of the track, while we are train lovers. We now call it Villa.
Luxury Villa Rental for a Special Evening
4. Expand your search area to surrounding places.
If you are unable to find something affordable locally in the current market, you should extend your search to the surrounding region. Because the rental market is tight. DNB reports in a recent survey, especially in the four large cities, but also in medium-sized places such as Groningen and Eindhoven. This is due to the continuing migration from surrounding areas because living in the city is popular.
In Amsterdam, the demand for rental properties in the free sector in 2015 was no less than 43 percent greater than the supply. For Rotterdam and Utrecht that was 28 and 21 percent. The chance of success is greater in surrounding areas and in smaller cities.
Marcel Trip, Woonbond
The government has launched various plans in recent years, including the Housing Agreement in 2013, to increase the rental offer. After decades of decline, the number of villas in the free sector has risen again since 2012, but DNB emphasizes that construction should be given more impetus. For example, by making agreements with municipalities on a minimum number of medium-sized rental properties, just as there are agreements on the number of social rental properties.
“Indeed, many more villas have to be built and offered at an affordable price,” says Marcel Trip, spokesperson for the Woonbond. ,, The government can also do something about this, for example, by limiting rents in the free sector. In this way, more can be offered just above the limit of social rent. “
5. Put your search on social media too.
Finally: forget brokers, registrations and waiting times. If you are searching in the free sector, you should start with your own network. Post your call on Facebook or Twitter and ask if people want to share it. There is always someone with a friend, acquaintance or colleague who has a house for rent or who is moving.
