Check whether you are entitled to rent reduction
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Is your rent too high, has your income fallen, or does your home have serious problems? If so, you may be able to apply for a rent reduction. The rules that apply depend on your situation, your tenancy agreement and the type of property you are renting. In this article, you can find out what options are available.
Conditions for rent reduction
As of 1 July 2023, you are entitled to rent reduction if you meet the following conditions:
You earn less than 120 percent of the
You have been renting a home or trailer from a housing association since 1 March 2023 or earlier.
You pay more than €575.03 (in 2023) per month in basic rent for the house or trailer. The basic rent is the rent without service charges.
If your rent began after 1 March 2023, you cannot apply for a low-income rent reduction.
Your income has fallen following a further increase in your rent
Do you rent a room or a property in the social housing sector? And have you had an income-related rent increase in the last 3 years? This means that your rent was increased further because your household income was higher at the time. Has your household income fallen since then? If so, you may be able to apply for a rent reduction. Your income may have fallen, for example, because:
You have started working fewer hours.
You
You are divorced.
Someone you were living with has moved out.
Your household income must now be below the
First, ask your landlord in writing, by letter or email, to reduce the rent. In your letter or email, state:
How much
Which lower basic rent you wish to pay.
How much you think the rent should be reduced by.
The date on which the reduced rent is to take effect.
Please also include the following documents:
A document issued by the municipality showing who is registered at your address. This is known as an extract from the
An
Your landlord must receive your request at least 2 months before the desired start date. The reduced rent must take effect on the 1st day of the month. You will not receive a rent reduction for the months prior to this date.
Does your landlord agree? If so, the reduced rent will come into effect on the date you have suggested.
Does your landlord not agree, or do you not receive a response? Then you can ask the Rental Commission to consider your request.
Please note: has your income only fallen this year and have the Dutch tax authorities not yet determined your annual income? Then the Rental Commission cannot yet make a final decision. The annual income statement is usually available from April of the following year.
Your income is temporarily lower
Is your income temporarily lower? For example, because you have lost your job, are working fewer hours or have got divorced? If so, you can ask your landlord for a temporary rent reduction.
A temporary rent reduction means that you pay less rent for an agreed period. You can also agree that your rent will not be increased during this period.
Apply for the reduction by post or email. In your application, you could write, for example:
Why you may be able to pay a lower rent for a limited period.
How much rent you wish to pay on a temporary basis.
When the reduction is due to start.
How long you will need the reduction for.
You can apply for a temporary rent reduction for a minimum of 1 month and a maximum of 3 years.
Your landlord decides whether you will receive the reduction. The landlord also determines the amount of the reduction, how long it will last and what terms apply. The landlord is not obliged to agree to this. You should therefore ensure that all the terms are clearly set out in a letter or email.
Are you moving into a more expensive rented property? If so, you can also ask your landlord to increase the rent gradually. This means you will not have to pay the full new rent straight away. This arrangement may last for a maximum of 3 years.
After the agreed period, your landlord may increase the rent again. You will then pay the rent that applied before the reduction. In some cases, the landlord may also add the annual rent increases that were permitted during the period of the reduction.
You do not need to repay the rent reduction you have received at a later date.
Your home has serious problems
Does your home have serious problems? These are major maintenance issues that your landlord must resolve. For example, severe mould, wood rot, a serious leak or major damp problems.
Not every problem in a property constitutes a serious defect. Using
How serious the problem is.
Whether you or your landlord needs to sort out the problem.
Whether you can involve the Rental Commission.
First, report the problems to your landlord by letter or email. Describe clearly what the issue is.
Ask your landlord to resolve the issues within 6 weeks. Keep a copy of your letter or email. Also take photos of the problems. Is the situation dangerous, or does the problem need to be resolved quickly? If so, ask your landlord to respond urgently.
Are you renting a room, a social housing flat or a mid-range rental property? And is your landlord failing to rectify serious defects within 6 weeks?
The Rental Commission will investigate how serious the problems are. If the defects are serious enough, the Rental Commission may temporarily reduce your rent. You will pay the reduced rent until the problems have been resolved.
The Rental Commission cannot oblige your landlord to carry out the necessary repairs. To do so, you can seek help from your local council or take the matter to the subdistrict court.
Are you renting a property on the private market? If so, you can only refer the matter to the Rental Commission if this is specified in your tenancy agreement. You can also agree this with your landlord in writing at a later date.
In this situation, the Rental Commission only issues advice. Your landlord is not obliged to follow this advice. Does your tenancy agreement contain no mention of the Rental Commission? Or is your landlord not following the advice? If so, you can take the matter to the
Ask for help with applying for a rent reduction
It can be difficult to work out which rules apply to your home. Your contact at
A social worker can help you with practical questions about living in the Netherlands. For example, they can work with you to work out which letters and documents you need.
Have you stopped receiving social support? If so, you can seek legal advice from
You can call Het Juridisch Loket free of charge on 0800-8020.
Do you receive housing allowance? Check your new rent
Do you receive housing allowance and is your rent going down? If so, the amount of your housing allowance may also change. If your rent goes down, you will usually receive less housing allowance. You may still be entitled to housing allowance, however.
Always check in
Is your old rent still listed there? If so, please notify us of your new rent as soon as possible. This will prevent you from having to repay housing allowance later or receiving too little housing allowance.
You must always notify the authorities of your new rent yourself if:
You are renting a property on the private housing market.
Your rent will change following a renovation.
You are moving house and your new rent is different.
You can report the change via Mijn toelsagen or via the Toeslagen app. To do this, you will need:
The amount of your new basic rent.
The date on which the new rent begins.
This information can be found in your tenancy agreement or in the letter from your landlord.