Mortgage Glossary

The Dutch mortgage and home-buying terms you actually meet, grouped by when you meet them, with the 2026 figures attached.

Buying a house in the Netherlands means learning perhaps thirty words that have no clean English equivalent. This glossary covers the ones that carry money or a deadline, grouped by the stage you first run into them. Figures are for 2026.

Working out what you can borrow

Leennormen — the national borrowing norms the Nibud advises on each year. Every lender applies broadly the same table, so shopping around moves your interest rate far more than it moves your maximum. See mortgage requirements.

Maximale hypotheek — your maximum loan. Capped two ways at once: by income under the leennormen, and by the property at 100% of the home's value. The second is why you need savings — see orientation and preparation.

NHG (Nationale Hypotheek Garantie) — a government-backed guarantee that settles the residual debt if you are forced to sell at a loss after job loss, disability or divorce. Available up to €470,000 in 2026, or €498,200 when borrowing extra for energy-saving measures. Costs a one-off 0.4% of the loan and usually earns a lower rate. See what is NHG.

Werkgeversverklaring — your employer's standard-form statement of income. On a temporary contract you will also need an intentieverklaring, the employer's statement of intent to make it permanent.

The offer and the contract

Aankoopmakelaar — a buying agent working for you, as opposed to the verkoopmakelaar who works for the seller and is not on your side however friendly they are.

Koopovereenkomst — the purchase agreement. Signed well before the notary, and binding once the cooling-off period expires. See the purchase agreement.

Schriftelijkheidsvereiste — the rule that a private buyer's purchase is only binding once it is in writing and signed. A verbal 'yes' to your bid does not bind either party.

Wettelijke bedenktijd — the statutory cooling-off period of three days after you receive the signed contract, during which you can withdraw without giving a reason and without penalty.

Ontbindende voorwaarden — resolutive conditions that let you exit the contract if something specific fails, most often financieringsvoorbehoud (mortgage not approved) or a structural survey. Waiving them to strengthen a bid is the single largest risk a buyer takes in a competitive market. See purchase agreement clauses.

Waarborgsom / bankgarantie — a deposit of usually 10% of the price, due some weeks after signing. Rather than paying cash you can arrange a bank guarantee, for which the bank charges roughly 1% of the guaranteed sum. See the security deposit.

Boete — the penalty for defaulting on a signed contract, conventionally 10% of the purchase price.

Costs and taxes

Kosten koper (k.k.) vs vrij op naam (v.o.n.) — who pays the purchase costs. k.k. means the buyer does, and is standard for existing homes; budget 4–6% of the price. v.o.n. means they are included in the price and is typical for new builds. See closing costs.

Overdrachtsbelasting — transfer tax. 2% for a home you will live in yourself; 0% under the starter exemption if you are 18–34 and the home is worth at most €555,000; 8% for a property you will not live in, such as a second home or a rental. See transfer tax.

Hypotheekrenteaftrek (HRA) — mortgage interest relief. You deduct the interest from taxable income for up to 30 years, and for mortgages taken out since 2013 only if the loan repays fully on an annuity or linear schedule. In 2026 relief is capped at 37.56%, regardless of your top tax rate. See understanding HRA.

Eigenwoningforfait — the notional income you must add to your tax return for owning the home, set at 0.35% of the WOZ value in 2026 for homes between €75,000 and €1,350,000. It offsets part of your HRA benefit, which is why the refund is smaller than 'interest × rate' suggests.

WOZ-waarde — the municipality's official valuation of your home. It drives OZB property tax and the eigenwoningforfait, and you can object to it.

Taxatierapport — an independent valuation report, required by the lender. See the valuation.

Bouwkundige keuring — a structural survey. Optional, and the best few hundred euros you can spend before committing.

The mortgage itself

Annuïteitenhypotheek — level gross monthly payment, interest-heavy at first. Lineaire hypotheek — fixed principal each month, so payments start higher and fall. Linear costs less interest overall; annuity is easier to afford early. Compare them in the calculator or read annuity vs linear.

Aflossingsvrije hypotheek — interest-only. No longer eligible for HRA on new loans, and limited to 50% of the home's value.

Rentevastperiode — the period your interest rate is fixed, commonly 5, 10 or 20 years. This is not the term of the mortgage. The loan usually runs 30 years; the rate is only fixed for part of it, and resets at the prevailing rate afterwards.

Boeterente — the penalty a lender may charge for overpaying beyond the penalty-free allowance, normally 10% of the original loan per year, or for breaking a fixed-rate period early.

Oversluiten — refinancing to a different lender or rate.

The property and the handover

Erfpacht — ground lease. You own the building but lease the land, paying an annual canon. Common in Amsterdam. Check whether the canon is fixed, indexed, or due for revision, because a revision can be brutal.

VvE (Vereniging van Eigenaars) — the owners' association every apartment belongs to, with mandatory monthly contributions and a reserve fund. See understanding the VvE.

Appartementsrecht — what you actually buy in an apartment building: a share of the whole plus the exclusive right to use your unit.

Leveringsakte vs hypotheekakte — the deed transferring ownership and the deed creating the mortgage. Both are signed at the notary on the same day, which is why the notary fee covers two documents.

Kadaster — the national land registry where ownership is recorded.

Eindinspectie — the final walk-through shortly before the notary appointment. See the final inspection and key transfer.