Why would anyone lend you money to finance the purchase of a home? Quite simply, because the person lending the money makes a profit on it. That is exactly what banks do.

They encourage people who have money to spare to deposit it in a savings account at the bank. In return, they pay a certain amount of interest. They then lend this deposited money to people who want to buy a home. They charge those people a fee, the mortgage interest rate. This mortgage interest rate is higher than the interest rate the bank pays on the savings account. The difference between the savings interest rate and the mortgage interest rate is the bank’s margin. They use this margin to pay the bank’s costs and make a profit.

Young people in particular tend to believe that the value of a property can only increase each year. However, this is not the case. The value of a property can also decrease (significantly). If you experience a fire that destroys your property, its value could even drop to €0.00.

However, the property belongs to you and not to the bank. The loan you have taken out remains the same, regardless of whether the value of the property rises or falls.

Suppose you buy a property for €300,000 and take out a loan of €300,000 for this purpose.

After a few years, you get a job in another part of the Netherlands, which means you have to move. However, since the moment you bought the property, its value has dropped. Suppose the property is now only worth €250,000. You will then sell the house for €250,000. This will allow you to repay most of the €300,000 loan, but the bank will still want the remaining €50,000 from you. You will then have to withdraw this amount from your savings account or borrow it again.

In the example mentioned above, if your property is completely destroyed by fire, you will no longer have a home, but your debt to the bank will remain. Fortunately, you can insure yourself against this. You can read about this in chapter 19

The bank wants the money it has lent back. The bank tries to obtain maximum security in this regard by, among other things:

→ Not lending more money than the consumer can afford to pay in interest and repayments based on their income (LTI = Loan To Income).

→ Not lending more money than the value of the property (Loan To Value).

→ Stipulating that if the loan is not repaid on time, the bank may sell the property and recover its claim first from the proceeds.

→ Prohibiting the owner from renting out the property. Tenants in the Netherlands enjoy a high degree of housing protection. A rented property sells for less than a vacant property. In such a case, the lender has less financial security if the property has to be sold. If you have borrowed the money and you live in the property yourself, the bank can, if you remain in default of repaying the loan, demand that you leave the property and the bank can then sell the property vacant.

→ To determine that both partners are jointly and severally liable. What does that mean? We will see later in this booklet.

Essentially, the National Mortgage Guarantee (Nationale Hypotheek Garantie; NHG) is an additional security for the bank and therefore not a “guarantee” for the owner of the property.

Let’s start at the beginning.

As a buyer of a property, you can purchase a mortgage with NHG for a one-off premium of 0.4%. In 2026, this will be possible for properties up to a maximum of €470,000. If you take energy-saving measures, you can finance up to €498,000 under the NHG.

The NHG only pays out if, as a result of unemployment, incapacity for work, death or divorce, the homeowner is no longer able to pay the mortgage costs. In such cases, the NHG takes over the debt from the bank. This gives the bank a little extra security and makes it willing to charge a slightly lower interest rate on mortgages with NHG. The discount you receive on the interest on the loan is often (much) more than the premium you pay for the NHG. In that respect, it can therefore be an attractive option for you.

After the NHG has taken over your debt to the bank, you then have a debt to the NHG. The NHG wants you to repay the debt as normal. The debt is therefore not waived! If necessary, the property may have to be sold and, under certain circumstances, the remaining debt may then be waived by the NHG.

The NHG therefore offers no security against the risk of the property losing value. Nor is it the case that, if you have payment problems, you as the owner of the property can sit back and expect the NHG to pay the mortgage costs.

However, in the event of four specific circumstances (unemployment, divorce, incapacity for work or death), the NHG will work with those involved to find a way of mitigating the financial consequences. However, the basic principle is that the debt must still be repaid.

It is important to distinguish between owning a property and having a debt with a bank. You and your partner may purchase the property together. You agree that you will both own 50% of the property. However, this does not have to be the case. In the case of cohabitants and prenuptial agreements, the mortgage can simply be taken out in one name, provided that this person’s income is sufficient for the new mortgage or the increase in the mortgage. Only in the case of a marriage in community of property or when the income of the second person is required will it be necessary to co-sign the mortgage.

So it is not the case that if you live in your partner’s house, you automatically have to co-sign. If the income of one partner is too low to take out the full loan required, the bank may require the other partner to co-sign. In that case, a situation may arise in which someone does not become a (co-)owner of the property but can still be held liable for the (entire) mortgage debt.

Suppose the mortgage debt is €300,000. The mortgage has been taken out, but the relationship ends and the partner who owns the property, leaves without a trace. For example, because they know that the debt is (much) higher than the value of the property.

The partner who remains behind cannot do anything with the property because they are not the owner. At some point, the bank will sell the property because the debt is not being repaid. But suppose the property only yields €200,000, leaving a debt of €100,000. Then the bank can claim the full €100,000 from both partners. But one of the partners is untraceable or is on social security benefits. The other partner has an income (but is not the owner of the house). The bank can then recover the full €100,000 from this partner. In this example, this partner will then have to try to recover half of the amount from the ex-partner. The remaining partner will then have no home and a debt of €100,000!

Joint and several liability also applies when both partners, for example, own 50% of the property. In that case, too, the bank can hold both partners liable for 100% of the debt. If one partner does not pay this debt, the other partner must recover the part of the debt associated with the non-paying partner from him or her.

Society wants to prevent people from borrowing more than they can afford. Laws have been created for this purpose. These laws prohibit banks from lending more money than is responsible. There are two limits:

→ The first limit is that the bank may not lend more than the value of the property at the time the loan is taken out for the purchase of the home. For this reason, the bank requires a valuation of the property. In the case of a renovation, the bank looks at the value after the renovation as stated in the valuation report.

→ The second limit is the income of the person who wants to take out the loan. The government has developed general standards (lending standards) that apply to all consumers. When developing these standards, the expenditure of people with different incomes is considered. For example, on food, transport, leisure, clothing, etc.

With these two limits, the lower of the two amounts is the maximum amount that a bank may lend. So, if the property is worth €200,000 but you have a high income, which means you could easily afford a mortgage of €300,000, the bank will still not be allowed to finance more than €200,000.

People with a higher income will generally spend more than people with a lower income. When you know someone’s income and what people with that income spend on average per month, you also know how much those people have left to pay for the costs of a home. Banks are not allowed to grant loans that exceed what consumers can reasonably afford.

The law prohibits the bank from lending you more money for the purchase of a home than you can afford to pay in mortgage costs. One of the components of the mortgage costs is the interest you have to pay on the loan.

When you take out the loan, the bank will agree with you on the interest you have to pay on the loan. You can agree on this for a short or longer period. See also the next chapter for more information.

The interest rate you agree on affects your monthly payments. If you want to buy a home for €300,000 and the interest rate is 2%, you will pay €500 in interest each month, but if the bank charges 4% interest, you will pay €1,000 in interest each month.

If your income is the same in both situations, the lending standards system means that the bank can lend you a higher amount at an interest rate of 2% than at an interest rate of 4%.

In reality, the statutory lending standards are not adjusted immediately after every change in the interest rate. Changes in the interest rate are gradually reflected in the lending standards.

A fall in interest rates therefore means that people can borrow a higher amount from the bank to purchase a home.

When many people who are looking for a home can borrow a higher amount because market interest rates are low, this can have an impact on house prices. Normally, rising demand leads to rising prices. This effect will be stronger as the shortage of housing increases. A situation in which all banks charge low mortgage interest rates does not automatically mean that it is easier to buy a home, because the bank may allow you to borrow a higher amount than in a situation where the market interest rate on mortgages is higher.

When you take out a mortgage loan, you will encounter two time block.

The first time block is the term. The term is the period from the moment you receive the money to finance the purchase of the property until the moment the loan must be repaid in full. It is common to take out a loan for a period of 30 years. This has a tax motive, which we will discuss later. A shorter term may be an option if, for example, you know that you will be leaving the property in 20 years. For the same loan amount, a shorter term means that the monthly interest and repayment costs will be higher. If you borrow €300,000, the monthly repayment over 30 years will be €833. But over 20 years, the repayment amount rises to €1,250. The term therefore affects the amount of the monthly payments.

In addition, there is a second (and more important) time block. This time block is called the fixed-interest period. The fixed-interest period is the period agreed with the bank during which the interest rate will remain unchanged.

For example, you can agree to take out a loan for a period of 30 years and that the interest rate for the first 10 years will be 3.5%. After these 10 years, you will have to sit down with the bank to renegotiate the interest rate. Suppose the market interest rate at that time is 6%, then the bank will offer you a new agreement for a period of, for example, 10 years, during which you will pay 6% interest for the second 10-year term.

When that period ends (20th year), you will have to sit down with the bank again. Suppose that the market interest rate at that time is 2%, then the bank will propose to continue the loan for the third 10-year term at an interest rate of 2%.

As a customer, you can choose your own fixed-interest period. For example, 5, 10, 15, 20 or even 30 years.

The interest rates charged by banks can vary significantly over the years.

An example of how interest rates can differ between banks can be seen in the following table from January 2026 for a loan where the loan amount exceeds 90% of the value of the property:

1 year fixed 3.84% 6 years fixed 4.02%   11 years fixed 4.41%     20 years fixed 4.56%
2 years fixed 3.89% 7 years fixed 4.02%  12 years fixed 4.42%  25 years fixed 4.78%
3 years fixed 3.97% 8 years fixed 4.02%  13 years fixed 4.46%  30 years fixed 4.82%
4 years fixed 3.97% 9 years fixed 4.02%  14 years fixed 4.48%
5 years fixed 4.02% 10 years fixed 4.02%  15 years fixed 4.51%

(These percentages are for illustrative purposes only. Please contact us for the current interest rates.)

The big question that everyone who takes out a mortgage has to deal with is which fixed-interest period to choose.

It can be tempting to opt for the shortest period and therefore the lowest interest rate, in this example 3.84%. But if interest rates rise and reach 5% a year later, your housing costs will increase significantly. The question is whether you will still be able to afford them. Even if you can, you will probably be quite disappointed, because you could have chosen to fix the interest rate at 4.02% for 10 years, for example.

The problem is that no one knows what interest rates will do in the future. So it’s a bit of a gamble. If you think interest rates will rise in the coming years, it is best to opt for a long fixed-interest period. If you think interest rates will fall in the future, it is better to opt for a short fixed-interest period.

Another approach is also possible. By opting for a 30-year fixed-interest period now, you know exactly what your housing costs will be. You do not run the risk of suddenly having to pay more in the future. Perhaps after 30 years you will conclude that, with the knowledge you have now, you have paid too much, but you will have had the certainty of fixed housing costs all those years.

As we have seen above, you agree on a fixed-interest period with a bank. The basic principle is that both you and the bank are bound by the agreed interest rate for the duration of that period, as long as the loan remains in place.

Suppose you take out a mortgage in 2026 and agree on an interest rate of 4% with the bank for a term of 5 years. In 2030, there is still one year to go before you sit down with the bank again to agree on a new fixed-interest period.

But for whatever reason, the interest rate in 2030 is suddenly much lower. If you were able to agree on a new fixed-interest period at that time, the interest rate for a 20-year fixed-interest period would, for example, be 2.5%. You could wait until 2031, but there is a chance that interest rates will have risen again by then.

Every bank allows you to “break” your mortgage agreement. This means that in 2030, you can agree a new fixed-interest period with the bank for, say, 10 years at 2.5% in this example. The bank is then entitled to compensation for the difference between the interest rate it would have received in that year for the agreed interest rate (4%) and the interest rate it actually receives (2.5%).

For a property worth €300,000, this loss to the bank amounts to 1.5% of €300,000 = €4,500. You will then have to pay this amount to the bank. This is early repayment compensation, also known as penalty interest. This compensation is tax deductible.

For you as a consumer, it is not a “real” loss. If you had simply allowed the contract to continue, you would have had to pay this anyway, but by doing so, you can fix your interest rate for a longer period of time when market interest rates are low.

When you purchase a property, you must pay a one-off tax on the purchase price. This tax is a contribution towards the public facilities available in the municipality where the property is located. The rates are:

→ If you are buying a property for the first time and will be living in it yourself, and you are younger than 25 and the purchase price of the property does not exceed €555,000: 0%.

→ If you do not meet the above criteria but are buying a property to live in yourself: 2%.

→ If you buy a property that you do not intend to live in yourself (to let), the rate is 10.4%. At the civil-law notary’s office, you indicate on a form provided by the Dutch tax authorities whether you intend to live in the property yourself and/or whether you are eligible for the starter’s exemption.

Income
Deduction related to mortgage interest
Taxable income
Rate up to income €38,883
Payable up to €38,883
Higher than €38,883 up to €78,426

Total income tax payable

Income tax without home ownership
€50,000
0
€50,000
35.75%
On income up to €38,883 €13,900
€50,000 – €38,883 = €11,117
37.96% of €11,117 = €4,175
€13,900 + €4,175 = €18,075

In this example, the tax benefit is therefore €18,075 minus €13,585 = €4,490.

So that is €141 per month! This example does not consider a special tax that you will have to pay as a homeowner: the notional rental value. We will return to this in chapter 15.

We indicated that under certain conditions, the interest is deductible. These conditions are:

→ You must live (or intend to live) in the property yourself.

→ In addition to the interest, you must repay the loan in equal monthly instalments over a period of 30 years.

→ At the civil-law notary’s office, you indicate on a form from the tax authorities whether you will be living in the property yourself and/or whether you can make use of the starter exemption.

It is common for someone who needs a mortgage to finance their home to consult an advisor.

These advisors charge their fees to the customer who requests advice. The advisor’s fee averages between €2,500 and €4,000. You may deduct these costs (once) from your taxable income.

The house must then be valued for the bank, and the civil-law notary must draw up the mortgage deed, which often costs around €1,000. You can also deduct these costs (once) from your income in the year in which you incurred them.

You could therefore say that the tax authorities cover more than a third of these costs.

The costs that you can deduct from your income in connection with financing the home you will be living in include:

→ mortgage advice costs;

→ valuation costs;

→ any penalty interest;

→ NHG costs;

→ civil-law notary’s fees for the mortgage deed;

→ mortgage interest;

→ mortgage application costs;

→ penalty interest.

What the tax authorities give with one hand (mortgage interest relief) they take back in part with the other (rental value allowance). We cannot sugarcoat it. You will pay tax on the market value of your property on the valuation date (Waardering Onroerende Zaken; WOZ).

Suppose the WOZ value of a property is €300,000, then in 2026 you will have to add 0.35% of this to your income. That is €1,050. You will then have to pay income tax on this amount. At a rate of 35.75%, that is €375.38, which is €31.28 per month.

So, when it comes to the tax treatment of your loan, you will have to deal with an item that you can deduct and an item that you have to add.

A less pleasant topic. What happens when the relationship ends?

First, let’s look at the main rule.

→ Suppose the total debt amounts to €300,000, then in principle 50% of the debt is for each of the partners. So €150,000 for each. But be careful. Earlier (chapter 6), we saw that both partners can often be held liable for 100% of the debt by the lender.

→  Suppose the property is owned 50% by each of the partners. Suppose that at the time of the separation, the value of the house is €300,000 and the mortgage is also €300,000, then on the one hand there is a debt of €150,000 and on the other hand an asset of €150,000.

In this neat example, it seems obvious that the partner who continues to live in the property should give the partner who is leaving €150,000, thereby gaining full ownership of the property, and that the partner who is leaving should use this €150,000 to pay off their debt. However, if the house has increased in value, the partner who remains will have to pay more for the part of the house that he or she takes over from the partner who is leaving, and the partner who is leaving will therefore have money “left over”.

As long as all the costs of the home are paid equally by both partners, it is also fair that the proceeds from the home are divided equally between them. This changes when one of the partners puts (much) more money into the home than the other or, for example, finances the costs of a renovation from their own capital.

In that case, it is reasonable that when determining the value of the home in connection with a separation, the portion that one partner has contributed extra is first allocated to him or her and only then divided 50/50.

When it comes to financing, you will be dealing with various people who are all responsible for part of the activities required to purchase and finance a property. We have listed the most important people for you. We have done this in chronological order of the parties involved with whom you will be dealing.

1 Mortgage Advisor
Before you make an offer on a property, it is wise to consult with a mortgage advisor. They can give you a rough idea of what would be a responsible purchase price for you from a financial point of view. This prevents you from making an offer that you cannot honour because you are unable to borrow the necessary amount.

2 Estate agent
An estate agent can act on behalf of either the seller or the buyer of a property. An estate agent is not allowed to serve both parties at the same time.

3 Energy expert
When you sell your property, you are required to have an energy label for your property. This label can be issued by a certified energy expert who will carry out an inspection in and around the property.

4 Valuer
If you already own a property and want to take out an (additional) mortgage for that property, the bank will often ask you to have your property valued by an independent expert.

5 Lender

Most people take out a loan from a bank to finance their home. At the bank, you will deal with “acceptors” who assess whether and, if so, how much money they can lend you. They will look at your income and the value of the property, among other things.

6 Civil-law Notary
A civil-law notary is appointed by the government. Agreements for, for example, the transfer of the home or taking out a loan can be signed by the parties in the presence of a notary. The presence of the civil-law notary then provides proof that the parties have indeed agreed to the relevant terms. The civil-law notary also ensures that certain agreements, such as the mortgage, are entered in a public register so that third parties know that there is a mortgage on the property.

Buying a home is the ideal time to consider making your home more energy efficient. Major renovations are also good opportunities to address the issue of sustainability.

There are several reasons to do this:

→  The (market) value of your home increases as it becomes more energy efficient.

→  You reduce your monthly energy bills.

→  The living environment in your home becomes more pleasant.

→  You contribute to achieving climate goals.

There are currently many options for making your home more sustainable. Not only through attractive mortgage options, but also through subsidies from the government, province and certain municipalities.

When purchasing or renovating a home, take the time to also consider making it more sustainable.

As soon as you become the owner of the property, the risk of damage to the property also passes to you.

For example, a fire could break out, or a severe storm could damage the roof of the property. Damage will reduce the value of your property. However, the debt you incurred to purchase the property will remain, even though the property is now worth less due to the damage.

The costs of repairing the damage can be considerable. You can avoid financial problems by taking out good building insurance that takes effect as soon as you become the owner of the property. There are various insurance companies that offer building insurance. The terms and conditions of these insurance policies may vary: for example, what risk you want to bear yourself in the event of damage (excess) or, in the event of major damage, the question of how long you will be reimbursed for the costs of staying elsewhere because you cannot live in your home while it is being repaired.

What constitutes suitable insurance depends on the property (whether or not it has a thatched roof) and your wishes and preferences. It is therefore important to seek good advice in this area.

When you get married, the law automatically attaches a number of legal consequences to this. For example, parental authority over the children, the creation of joint property and the rights of one spouse to the existing property after the death of the other spouse.

You can live together perfectly well without getting married, but especially if you are going to buy a home together, it is wise to draw up a cohabitation agreement in which you agree with each other how matters should be arranged in certain circumstances.

In fact, a cohabitation agreement allows you to arrange virtually all the matters that the law regulates for people who get married. The difference is that you have to take the initiative yourself. In addition, you can tailor the agreements in a cohabitation contract to your specific needs.

A cohabitation contract is drawn up by a civil-law notary. Such a cohabitation contract is also valid vis-à-vis third parties. Important matters that you can arrange in a cohabitation agreement include:

→ If you are registered at the same address, you automatically become each other’s tax partner. This can be attractive in relation to mortgage interest relief when there are large differences in income between the partners.

→ With regard to the mortgage, you can make agreements about:

o Who pays the interest and repayments on the mortgage;

o Who benefits from any increase in the value of the property when it is sold;

o Who will pay what part of any remaining mortgage debt.

→ If one or both partners participate in a pension scheme, you can report this to the pension provider after concluding the cohabitation contract and agree that when the pension participant dies, a survivor’s pension will be paid to the surviving partner.

→ A cohabitation agreement is not the same as a will. In a cohabitation agreement, you can specify which assets you have in common. If one of you dies, the surviving partner will inherit these shared assets.

To ensure that you also inherit each other’s personal belongings, each of you must draw up a will.

If you die without a will, the law determines how your estate should be divided. The legislator therefore determines who receives which part of your assets from the inheritance.

Within certain limits, you can use a will to ensure that your inheritance is divided differently than on the basis of the statutory provisions. You will need to consult a civil-law notary to draw up a will.

Topics that you can arrange in a will include:

→ Who do you want to appoint as heirs (e.g. charities)?

→ Which of the heirs will receive which part of the estate?

→ Who will take care of the minor children (guardianship arrangement) and what provisions will you make for the costs of this guardianship? What should happen to the assets you leave to your children if the relationship between your child and his/her partner ends afterwards?

→ Preventing the estate from becoming worthless because the surviving spouse has to be admitted to a nursing home and has to finance the costs of this themselves. Who will settle the estate after death? Agreements that reduce the inheritance tax for the surviving relatives compared to without these agreements.

If you are cohabiting and are going to buy a house together, it is wise to have both a cohabitation contract and a will drawn up by a civil-law notary. It is best to do this before you buy the house and take out the mortgage. If you haven’t done this yet, don’t worry. But do it as soon as possible!

A mortgage is nothing more and nothing less than a (large) sum of money that you borrow for a very long time. You must repay the loan in all cases. In addition, you must pay interest on the amount borrowed.

Together with your advisor and the bank, you assess whether you and your partner are able to pay the mortgage costs not only now but also in the future. Whether you can afford it now is easy to determine, but whether this will also be the case in the future is less certain. After all, changes may occur in your life that make it difficult or impossible to continue to bear the mortgage costs. A few examples:

→ One of the partners may become unemployed, for example because the company goes bankrupt. Will it be possible to find a new job with at least the same salary?

→ You may become ill for a long period of time.

→ You may become incapacitated for work due to a traffic accident. If you are “at fault” for this, you will face a significant drop in your income.

→ If children are added to the family, one or both partners may need to work fewer hours.

→ The relationship may dissolve. This may not only mean a loss of income, but also that one of the partners will probably leave the home and have to look for another home, which will also have housing costs.

→ Premature death of one of the partners.

→ Perhaps one or both partners will retire before the debt is fully repaid. It is possible that this pension will be (much) lower than the income that was earned. If the mortgage payments remain the same, it is questionable whether they can still be easily afforded on the lower pension.

It is important to be realistic and recognise that you too can have bad luck. By taking this into account in good time, it is possible to mitigate the financial consequences of these risks.

Does it make a difference whether you want a loan from the bank to purchase an existing home or a loan to have a home built? Yes, it makes a big difference.

People who want to have a home built often already own a home. Most have already taken out a loan to purchase this home. If you want to continue living in this property until the new property is ready, you will temporarily have to deal with double expenses, namely:

→ the mortgage expenses for the property you live in;

→ the expenses for the loan you take out to pay the contractor who is building the new property.

This process works as follows: You agree with the bank that it will provide a loan for the total amount you think you will need for the costs of the new home. The bank lends you this amount on the condition that, when the new home is ready, you will live there and sell your old home and repay the loan on that home. The bank deposits the full amount for the construction of the new home into a separate account (construction deposit). You can then use this amount to pay the invoices that the builder sends you during construction. You receive interest from the bank on the amount in this account and you pay interest on the amount you withdraw to pay the builder.

When financing a new development home, there are uncertainties that you do not have when buying an existing home. These include:

→ When the new home is “ready”, you have to sell your “old” home. How long will that take, and will the selling price still be around what you had in mind when you started building the new development home?

→ The costs of materials and labour can rise sharply in a short period of time. Who bears the risk of these cost increases? The contractor or you as the client?

→ The contractor may go bankrupt in the meantime. What happens then to the completion of the home?

→ And who will pay if the bankrupt contractor has made mistakes during construction? If “additional work” arises during construction, can it still be financed? Financing a home that you are having built or are going to build yourself is possible, but it is very different from financing an existing home.

At the end of 2025, the average purchase price of a home in the Netherlands was around €500,000. Unless you have a very well-paid job, it is probably not possible to buy a home on a single income.

Is finding a life partner so that you can take out a mortgage based on two incomes the only option?

No, there are several options. In consultation with a good mortgage adviser, you can explore whether and, if so, what other options are available to you. These could include specially subsidised loans for young first-time buyers or possible guarantees or gifts from family members such as parents or grandparents.

A relatively new development is that two or more people who are not in a romantic relationship decide to buy a home together. These could be two brothers, friends or colleagues, for example. The core idea here is that you add up the incomes of those who are going to live together. That total income, together with the value of the home you want to buy, then determines the maximum amount the bank is willing to lend you. Especially when three or four people buy a home together, the combined income will often be sufficient to buy a home in the higher price range. The supply of these types of more expensive homes is generally greater than that of homes in the lowest price segment.

This may sound like a good solution if you are single. However, we strongly advise you to seek expert advice when making such a decision, as it is wise to arrange a number of matters with your co-buyers in advance. Here are a few examples:

→ What happens if one of your co-buyers wants to move after a few years and receive their share of the value of the property?

→ What is the situation if one of the co-buyers enters into a romantic relationship?

→ Are they allowed to move into the property? How do you deal with the unexpected death of one of the co-buyers? How will the deceased’s heirs be “settled”?

→ What is the arrangement if one of the co-buyers contributes more or less to the costs of maintaining the property?

There are many more questions that you need to consider carefully before taking this step. Every question can be answered. It is important to ensure that the answer and the decision taken are appropriate to your situation and wishes! We would be happy to advise you on this!

The “jubelton” (tax-exempt gift of up to €28,947 for the acquisition or renovation of the recipient’s own home) no longer exists, but parents will still be allowed to gift a sum of money in 2026. In 2026, parents will be allowed to gift €6,908 to each of their children. The children will not have to pay tax on this amount.

In addition, a parent will be allowed to make a one-off gift of a higher amount to a child. However, this exemption only applies if the recipient or their partner is between 18 and 40 years of age. For 2026, the exemption for this one-off gift is €32,129. The child is free to decide how this gift is spent. It can therefore also be used to finance part of the purchase/maintenance of a home. Tax must be paid on gifts that exceed the exemption.

For gifts up to €158,669, 10% tax must be paid. A rate of 20% applies to the excess amount.

Some expect that in the coming years, politicians will significantly increase taxes on wealth acquired through inheritances. Election manifestos include tax rates of 30% and 40% for inheritances above €1 million.

It is possible, for example, that parents who have sufficient wealth during their lifetime will make a large gift, with the children now paying the 10% gift tax. This gift can also be made “on paper” through a civil-law notary, so that the parents do not have to pay the gifted money directly to the child.

If you would like to know more about this process, it is advisable to seek detailed advice from a civil-law notary or tax specialist, for example. If you are interested, we would be happy to put you in touch with specialists with whom our firm has had good experiences.

At the end of this “Mortgage, step-by-step” publication, we would like to draw your attention to something important.

There is currently a significant shortage of housing. We understand very well that many people want to buy their own home. It is also conceivable that in such a situation you may be tempted to present certain matters in a more favourable light than they actually are, in the hope that the bank will still grant you the necessary loan.

This “painting a rosier picture” can go too far. For example, by concealing debts you have or by falsifying documents you need to submit to the bank, such as an employer’s statement or bank statements. The bank may discover this before a decision is made on your application. In all likelihood, the bank will then refuse to grant the loan, but that is not the end of the matter. The bank may also discover this after the loan has been granted. In that case, the bank will most likely act. The negative consequences for you and your partner could be enormous. You should be aware that the bank will take the following measures:

→ The bank will terminate its relationship with you and your partner. Not only for the mortgage, but for all services.

→ If the loan has already been granted, the bank will cancel the mortgage agreement. This means that you will have to repay the loan in full at that moment.

→ The bank will have the right to charge you costs because the loan is being repaid earlier than agreed.

→ In the event of fraud, the bank can register you and your partner in a register that is consulted by all banks and insurance companies. This registration can remain in place for 8 years. During this registration, you may find that you are unable to take out a new mortgage or insurance policy, or only at additional cost.

→ The bank may also report the matter to the police. This could result in criminal prosecution.

These are all measures that will have a huge impact on you and your partner. Therefore, our urgent advice is: Mortgage fraud: stay well away from it.

Are you unsure about what the bank means by certain questions during the mortgage process? Don’t guess and answer something at random. We are your advisors and we are here to represent your interests during the process of financing your home. So, if you have any questions or if something is unclear, please ask us!

When taking out a mortgage, you usually look at what you can afford to pay each month. That makes sense, but it’s not enough. A mortgage often runs for 30 years, and a lot can change during that time.

Over the years, your income may increase, but it may also decrease. Think about working less, retirement, disability or having children. At the same time, the tax treatment of the mortgage may also change. For example, mortgage interest relief may be reduced or even disappear.

It is therefore wise not only to look at today’s monthly costs, but also to consider the question:

‘Can I still pay this mortgage if my income decreases?’

Financing that feels comfortable now may become a burden later if this is not considered in advance.

Inflation means that money will be worth less in the future. This affects your housing costs. If you have a mortgage with a long fixed-interest period, your monthly costs will remain the same, while prices and wages often rise over the years. In that case, your mortgage costs will become relatively lower.

On the other hand, many other costs do rise, such as

→ energy;

→ municipal taxes;

→home maintenance.

When choosing a fixed-interest period, it is therefore important to realise that fixed costs provide certainty, but that not all costs are predictable. A good balance between certainty and flexibility is important here.