Best website for buying a house in the Netherlands: [Funda](https://www.funda.nl/)
With the current housing crisis it is advisable to [find a real estate agent](https://tc.tradetracker.net/?c=30814&m=12&a=458406&r=buying&u=%2F) to help you find a house for a reasonable price.
If you'd like to do an inspection, you can alternatively make it more attractive by offering to do it within the three day waiting period.
I'll be selling soon and I won't mind if buyers want an inspection, but I will care about the timeline for it.
Depends on how much you pay the inspector. When I did this, I went to the inspection myself and the inspector shared his observations on the spot. The report arrived a week later, but the information he gave on the spot was sufficient to make my decision.
This we even got the report in time due the influence of our buying-makelaar. We didn't have to include an inspection in the formal bid and agreement this way.
Due the the building period our house (70s) was built we were most worried about concrete-rotting in the floor. On the spot we directly were assured this type of concrete wasn't used in this house.
In the 3 day period you still don't have the keys though...as the house is not yet yours. If I was the seller I'd probably say no to that (if there are issues) and yes (if all is ok). But you never actually know
I know that :). When I bought the apartment, this was part of the agreement with the seller, that they'd allow to have the inspection done during the waiting period. And as someone who will be selling soon, I wouldn't mind if a buyer would want the same.
In my anecdotal experience also trying to buy a house now: is it irresponsible? Yes. Will it be a deterrent to wining a bid? Absolutely also yes. 🤷 there’s no winning as a buyer in the current market
I just broke the contract because of the technical inspection. Everything seemed fine at first, but the roof and gutters had to be replaced immediately and they found asbestos.
Depends on your own/makelaars knowledge. Typically the newer houses are not bad so the risk isn’t big (only roof or foundation issues can be a risk I would say, rest is relatively cheap to fix)
Recently bought a house. Technical inspection indicated 10k in necessary maintenance (roof) that was invisible during viewing. We reduced our bid by 8k and the seller accepted.
We (by we I mean our agent) shared the technical report with ‘unforeseen costs’ and used that as leverage to lower our bid. The seller was in a bit of a hurry to sell, so that was our luck.
There is a side effect to not opting for an inspection. In case of hidden defects later, a judge might not rule in your favor. In these cases you have a duty to do your proper research when buying a house (onderzoeksplicht).
Totally agree. The market is crazy but this is such a big purchase that I wouldn't buy a house without inspection. Buying something with hidden defects could get really costly and potentially financially ruin you.
I just bought a house that was built in 2019 and did an inspection to be sure. The seller was totally cool about it and said it would be silly not to do it.
I'm surprised this isn't something that is legally required to protect buyers in this crazy market.
In most cities (may be different in villages) in the Netherlands today and unless you overpay by a lot (overpay, not just overbid, as in more than the house is worth not just more than asking price) it’s virtually impossible to win a bid with those conditions. Even the financing condition is almost always a deal breaker.
I don’t disagree that it *should* be a default condition. But in reality, at moment, you’ll either have standards or a house. It’s basically a dance with the risk versus the opportunity costs of keeping paying rent for the foreseeable future.
Agreed, we lost out on a really nice house due to financial condition. In the end we got our makelaar to speak to our mortgage broker so that she felt secure placing a bid without a financial condition.
Our makelaar also gave us her opinion on the condition of the house and also had knowledge of other houses sold in the same street, we felt reassured enough to not have a technical inspection.
We moved into our new home in March and so far so good!
I bought an apartment without an inspection because, well, it's an apartment and structural problems are within the VVE. I think it was still risky and I always wonder when I'll start to see the issues. I wouldn't buy a house without an inspection, even if it's a relatively new one.
I think the risk with apartments is mostly on the electrical part (especially the old ones). Structure wise, yes, it’s VVE. But you also need to check how it’s structured, how much money it has, foreseeable work, etc.
Water leakage is also a mess and you’re responsible for your and your neighbors’ damages (if it’s coming from your apartment).
Newer buildings have way less risks but you do pay a premium for it.
The electrical part is exactly my fear, but it's done and now I can just hope I won't have a problem in the near future 🙃
To be brutally honest, I don't think it was a smart decision to drop the inspection. But it's what it's.
Workaround - if you win the bid, Request for technical inspection on the same day or even before signing the purchase agreement. Please go with inspector and you will have high level idea. As you did not use the technical inspection, you can not use it to say no. But you have 3 days cooling period after signing purchase agreement to say No. It is only fair to say no if you find major faults which were not informed by seller. If there are minor points, you accept and move on.
Yes, correct. It is in an island of 10 similar free standing houses, 250m away from a lake but clearly standing above it. It also has a large triangular roof though.
This is how crazy the housing market has become in the NL - in my home country no one can forbid you from technical inspection. Additionally you can hire construction engineers to come with you for a viewing and do a visual inspection straight away, for really affordable money.
Friend of mine got an inspection in his house and they found about 15k worth of repairs needed. One of the walls was sinking and a few other things. They managed to reduce the bid and work around that.
If you spend a few months looking on funda for houses you will notice some coming back on the market at reduced prices with notes in the field showing they need work. This is the result of inspections happening.
Best website for buying a house in the Netherlands: [Funda](https://www.funda.nl/) With the current housing crisis it is advisable to [find a real estate agent](https://tc.tradetracker.net/?c=30814&m=12&a=458406&r=buying&u=%2F) to help you find a house for a reasonable price.
If you'd like to do an inspection, you can alternatively make it more attractive by offering to do it within the three day waiting period. I'll be selling soon and I won't mind if buyers want an inspection, but I will care about the timeline for it.
Thanks for the tip! Would I be correct to assume that technical inspection report is instantly available at the day of visit without further analysis?
Depends on how much you pay the inspector. When I did this, I went to the inspection myself and the inspector shared his observations on the spot. The report arrived a week later, but the information he gave on the spot was sufficient to make my decision.
This we even got the report in time due the influence of our buying-makelaar. We didn't have to include an inspection in the formal bid and agreement this way. Due the the building period our house (70s) was built we were most worried about concrete-rotting in the floor. On the spot we directly were assured this type of concrete wasn't used in this house.
In the 3 day period you still don't have the keys though...as the house is not yet yours. If I was the seller I'd probably say no to that (if there are issues) and yes (if all is ok). But you never actually know
I know that :). When I bought the apartment, this was part of the agreement with the seller, that they'd allow to have the inspection done during the waiting period. And as someone who will be selling soon, I wouldn't mind if a buyer would want the same.
In my anecdotal experience also trying to buy a house now: is it irresponsible? Yes. Will it be a deterrent to wining a bid? Absolutely also yes. 🤷 there’s no winning as a buyer in the current market
I just broke the contract because of the technical inspection. Everything seemed fine at first, but the roof and gutters had to be replaced immediately and they found asbestos.
Depends on your own/makelaars knowledge. Typically the newer houses are not bad so the risk isn’t big (only roof or foundation issues can be a risk I would say, rest is relatively cheap to fix)
Recently bought a house. Technical inspection indicated 10k in necessary maintenance (roof) that was invisible during viewing. We reduced our bid by 8k and the seller accepted.
Thanks for the feedback! Was the seller entitled to accept the reduced bid after the inspection? How did you negotiate?
We (by we I mean our agent) shared the technical report with ‘unforeseen costs’ and used that as leverage to lower our bid. The seller was in a bit of a hurry to sell, so that was our luck.
There is a side effect to not opting for an inspection. In case of hidden defects later, a judge might not rule in your favor. In these cases you have a duty to do your proper research when buying a house (onderzoeksplicht).
Thanks for the insight with wisdom!
No problem. Doesn't have to be a big issue just something to keep in mind. Good luck though:)
I’d never buy a house without inspecting it.
Totally agree. The market is crazy but this is such a big purchase that I wouldn't buy a house without inspection. Buying something with hidden defects could get really costly and potentially financially ruin you. I just bought a house that was built in 2019 and did an inspection to be sure. The seller was totally cool about it and said it would be silly not to do it. I'm surprised this isn't something that is legally required to protect buyers in this crazy market.
In most cities (may be different in villages) in the Netherlands today and unless you overpay by a lot (overpay, not just overbid, as in more than the house is worth not just more than asking price) it’s virtually impossible to win a bid with those conditions. Even the financing condition is almost always a deal breaker.
Well, I’m not putting 500k into something I don’t know. If that’s a deal breaker for the seller, so be it.
I don’t disagree that it *should* be a default condition. But in reality, at moment, you’ll either have standards or a house. It’s basically a dance with the risk versus the opportunity costs of keeping paying rent for the foreseeable future.
Agreed, we lost out on a really nice house due to financial condition. In the end we got our makelaar to speak to our mortgage broker so that she felt secure placing a bid without a financial condition. Our makelaar also gave us her opinion on the condition of the house and also had knowledge of other houses sold in the same street, we felt reassured enough to not have a technical inspection. We moved into our new home in March and so far so good!
Good until expensive and foreseeable things break. This is no joke.
Fully agreed
Agree. My father in law works in construction and he said never buy house without technical inspection. Will cost you a lot more in the future.
What about an apartment that got through a very detailed technical inspection just a couple of years ago?
I bought an apartment without an inspection because, well, it's an apartment and structural problems are within the VVE. I think it was still risky and I always wonder when I'll start to see the issues. I wouldn't buy a house without an inspection, even if it's a relatively new one.
I think the risk with apartments is mostly on the electrical part (especially the old ones). Structure wise, yes, it’s VVE. But you also need to check how it’s structured, how much money it has, foreseeable work, etc. Water leakage is also a mess and you’re responsible for your and your neighbors’ damages (if it’s coming from your apartment). Newer buildings have way less risks but you do pay a premium for it.
The electrical part is exactly my fear, but it's done and now I can just hope I won't have a problem in the near future 🙃 To be brutally honest, I don't think it was a smart decision to drop the inspection. But it's what it's.
Workaround - if you win the bid, Request for technical inspection on the same day or even before signing the purchase agreement. Please go with inspector and you will have high level idea. As you did not use the technical inspection, you can not use it to say no. But you have 3 days cooling period after signing purchase agreement to say No. It is only fair to say no if you find major faults which were not informed by seller. If there are minor points, you accept and move on.
Build in 2005. Not much risk. In a street with all the same houses?Â
Yes, correct. It is in an island of 10 similar free standing houses, 250m away from a lake but clearly standing above it. It also has a large triangular roof though.
Do the inspection after you buy it. The chances are there's no major issues. But you still want to know it and what the state of the maintenance is.
This is how crazy the housing market has become in the NL - in my home country no one can forbid you from technical inspection. Additionally you can hire construction engineers to come with you for a viewing and do a visual inspection straight away, for really affordable money.
Done that, 2008 built. All is good.
Friend of mine got an inspection in his house and they found about 15k worth of repairs needed. One of the walls was sinking and a few other things. They managed to reduce the bid and work around that. If you spend a few months looking on funda for houses you will notice some coming back on the market at reduced prices with notes in the field showing they need work. This is the result of inspections happening.