Contract check
Before signing, you should send your contract to the Rental Team South Limburg, who will check for free to make sure everything is reasonable and legal. You might have to wait up to one working week to hear back from them. We understand that the whole rental process is fast-paced and that there may not be enough time for contract checks, so if this is not possible, then you should read through your contract yourself. The document will likely be in Dutch, so non-Dutch speakers will want to get it translated.
When checking your contract, you should pay attention to:
1. fixed or indefinite contract
An agreement for a fixed period includes a final date. This means that the contract ends automatically after the agreed period, provided that the landlord informs the tenant in writing about the end of the lease in good time (between one and three months before the agreed end-date). Indefinite tenancy agreements continue as long as the tenant keeps paying rent and the landlord does not terminate the contract. These contracts usually come with a minimum term, before which the tenant may not terminate the lease.
2. Basic rent and additional charges
The basic rent is supposed to reflect the quality and surface area of the property. This rental price only includes the actual rent. Additional charges might be gas, water and electricity, service costs, internet and home insurance. When it comes to rent, it’s important to understand the difference between basic rent and additional charges. Check our section on rental prices to find out how the system works.
3. Rent increase
Rent increases are controlled by law, and depend on whether your accommodation falls under the social or private housing sector. For social sector accommodation, rent increases may be described in your rental contract, or can even be proposed by your landlord a minimum of two months before the rent increase would take effect. You as a tenant can reject the proposal, and your case may end up before the Rent Tribunal. As a general rule, rent increases can happen once every 12 months, and usually take place on July 1st. The maximum yearly rent increase percentage for the social sector is determined by the government.
There are less rules applying to private sector accommodation, which means that as a tenant you have less protection. Rent can increase every 12 months, however, increases in between these 12 months are also possible if improvements have been made to the accommodation. The landlord is not obliged to notify you of any rent increases within a set period of time. If the tenant does not want to pay higher rent, the landlord may terminate the contract. Watch out for clauses in your contract indicating a set annual rent increase (so-called indexation clauses). If no indexation clause is included in the contract, the landlord can only increase the rent by offering the tenant a new contract stipulating the higher rent (among other things). If the tenant does not agree to the new contract for the same property, the landlord may then terminate the contract.
4. Deposit amount and return
A deposit is generally required, but any amount worth more than two months of rent is usually considered unfair. The contract should clearly specify how and when your deposit will be transferred back to you.
Should you sign even if the contract is not ideal?
If a contract seems overly burdensome on you as a tenant, or looks sketchy, it might be a good idea to let it go. Even if you’re running out of time to find a place, it may cause you more trouble in the long-term to sign a bad contract than to look for temporary accommodation while you take the time to find something that’s truly worth it.
If you find a place that you really love, the contract is satisfactory, and the only issue is that the rent is a little steep (€750+), it can sometimes be a good idea to sign, as there is a chance you could get some money back by applying to the Huurteam Zuid-Limburg. You should tread very carefully here, as there is a caveat: in situations like this, you always need to assume the worst and be prepared to pay this steep rent in full, in the event that the Huurteam Zuid-Limburg cannot help you claim any excess rent back. If you do sign a contract you find expensive, contact HTZL within six months to start a procedure claiming back any excess rent.
You can read more about procedures to claim back excess rent and agency fees here.
Terminating a contract
Terminating a contract can be a tricky process with lots of rules surrounding it. In the Netherlands there are mainly two types of rental agreements: a contract for a defined period and a contract for an undefined period. It is very useful to know which one you have, because it could make a difference in how you should terminate your contract. The default rule is that tenancy contracts have to be terminated by giving notice. this means that you as a tenant send your landlord a formal letter informing them that you wish to terminate the rental agreement. You don’t have to provide a reason for termination, and termination is in principle unilateral, which means that you don’t need the landlord to consent to it.
Contract for an undefined period
In this type of contract, a minimum period (for example 12 months) is allowed. During this minimum period, you cannot end your contract, unless the landlord agrees. The landlord can set conditions to agree to this, for example, you might pay an extra month’s rent or be required to find a new person to take over the contract. After the minimum period you can end the contract with the correct notice period.
The benefit of this type of contract is that the landlord cannot end your contract easily. There needs to be legal reasons.
Contract for a defined period
In this type of contract (most often a 12-month contract) there is a date the contract begins and a date the contract ends. This contract cannot have a minimum period and therefore you can end the contract during the defined period if you give correct notice.
The downside is that the landlord has an easy way to terminate your contract on the end date of the defined period. The landlord only needs to let you know 1 to 3 months before the end date that the contract is going to end, they do not need legal reasons to end the contract on that date. If the landlord does not remind the tenant of the end date and the tenant lives longer than the defined period, the contract automatically turns into a contract for an undefined period. You do not need a new contract for that, the old contract automatically changes, and the rest of the contract stays valid.
If you want to terminate your contract as a tenant, often the contract lets you know how to give correct notice. This can be a contact form via a website of an agency, or an email to the landlord/agency. If the contract does not mention how to give notice, the correct way to end the contract is sending a letter via registered post, stating that you want to end the rental agreement per that date. You could also email the letter first, but if you do not receive a response, you should still send the letter via registered post to be sure. We recommend that you send both a letter and an email. You can download a sample of a formal letter giving notice here.
You still must deal with a correct notice period when cancelling your rent. Normally, the notice equals the term of payment, which has been written down in the contract. For example, if you pay rent monthly, you must give one month’s notice*. Unless differently stated in the rental agreement, the cancellation of the rent needs to be received by the landlord before the first day of the month.
* One FULL month (e.g. meaning you cannot end the contract on the 15th of April for the 16th of May. If you give notice on the 15th of April, you can only end the contract by the 31st of May/1st of June).
