The rent for your home may get higher because of the annual rent increase

Published at: 19/06/2024, 08:00

Landlords may almost raise their rents again. So maybe your rent will also go up starting 1 July 2024. Read how the rent increase works here. And whether you can do anything about it.

Housing corporations

and other landlords are allowed by Dutch law to raise the rent each year on houses they rent out.

You will usually get a letter from your landlord about this. Landlords of social housing must give at least 2 months' notice via letter. Landlords of

freehold housing

do not have to remind you in writing, but usually do.

Your landlord must follow maximum increase rules

A landlord may not simply raise the rent much higher. There are legal agreements about this. A landlord must take into account a maximum allowable increase, depending on the type of home and the rent.

For example, different rules apply to social housing than to free-sector housing. In addition, there are different rules when you rent an entire house than when you only rent a room.

There is a maximum rent the landlord can charge for your home

A maximum rent is set by law for your property. With the "Huurprijscheck" (rent check) of the

Dutch Rent Commission

, you can calculate what this maximum rent is.

The rent check assesses your home's features and amenities, such as area and state of repair, based on points. These points determine how high the rent can be.

You can object to rent increases

If the landlord does not follow the rules for rent increases, you can object. Usually the letter about your rent increase will tell you how to object to the increase.

By law, you must at least continue to pay your old rent. As otherwise you lose your rights as a tenant. In the worst case, the landlord can start proceedings to terminate your contract if you do not pay rent.

Read below how to object to the rent increase:

Objecting with a letter

Het Juridisch Loket

offers a sample letter for objecting to rent increases on their website.

Adapt the sample text to your situation and send that to your landlord. Do this before the rent increase takes effect. Keep a copy of the letter for yourself.
Your contact at
VluchtelingenWerk Nederland (VWN)
or a social worker from another organisation can support you with making the objection.
Keep paying your old rent to the landlord to avoid problems.

You can find a sample letter to object to the rent increase of a social housing or room on the website of Het Juridisch Loket.

More information

Sample letter of objection to rent increase for freehold housing

You can find a sample letter to object to the rent increase of a freehold housing on the website of Het Juridisch Loket.

More information

Objecting without a letter

If you did not send a letter and you do not pay the rent increase, your landlord must send you a reminder letter within 3 months of the effective date of the rent increase.

If you still disagree with the rent increase, you can ask the Dutch Rent Commission to say whether the increase is justified. Call them within 4 months of the effective date of the rent increase.
Your contact at
VluchtelingenWerk Nederland (VWN)
or a social worker from another organisation can support you with making the objection.
Keep paying your old rent to the landlord to avoid problems.