For anyone that has been living in the Netherlands, for even a moment, the word Funda has become rather commonplace. Which makes sense, it is an amazing tool to begin your search for your new home. It gets better, Funda can also provide insights into how your future home can impact your financial capacity.
You can read here to find out the must knows when looking at Funda, and become a financial Funda guru.
The Mortgage Provider Perspective
1. The House / Your Goal
There are some important physical features of the home that we look at (not only because we are curious to see what you are purchasing 😉). Is it ready to live in? Or does it need some extra nurturing and attention? In other words, what is the plan and what is important to achieve this. For example, if the home is a bit of a fixer-upper the banks will require some essentials, such as a kitchen and a bathroom. It is also nice to know that banks can facilitate renovations, keep in mind that usually it’s not the full amount.
2. Energy Label
In essence, the energy label strongly influences your borrowing capacity. As you may know, sustainability is playing a larger role every year, including the housing market. To encourage people to invest in sustainability most lenders are allowed to enlarge your mortgage capacity and give you a favourable interest rate. We have written more about sustainability here.
3. Amsterdam Homes
For Amsterdam homes specifically, there are three scenarios you can face regarding the ownership of the land. The first, the home is on its own ground, great news. The second, the home is on leased land which has been paid off until a distant date in the future, also good news (however, make sure you check the specific conditions). The third, the home is on leased land where you are required to pay a sum to use the land on a monthly or annual basis, less good news. It is important to know that the ground lease repayments will harm your maximum borrowing capacity.
4. Market Value (Marktwaarde)
Although it can’t be found on funda.nl, we wanted to mention the importance of the market value to you. On Funda, you will see the asking price, which does not translate to the value of the property, this needs to be done by an independent valuator. Important, because that opinion affects your borrowing capacity. Your best friend to know about the value of the home, before doing the independent valuation, is your real estate agent. Real estate agents’ speciality involves knowing what a reasonable bid is (which can be higher than the asking price), and what a reasonable market value will be.
5. Homeowners Association ( VvE – Vereniging van Eigenaren)
This one is only applicable to apartments. When purchasing an apartment you automatically join the VvE (or homeowners association), to handle the maintenance of the building. It is important to check, not only for you but also for the lender, that the VvE runs professionally. They need to be registered at the KvK, have a yearly meeting, save money in a reserve fund, provide building insurance, and have a maintenance plan. This is all visible on Funda, under the VvE list.
6. Home Maintanence / Picture Perfect
Those gorgeous home photos you see online, are not always representative of the home (remember, it is someone’s specialty to make it as glamorous as possible). Therefore, we recommend a building inspection, with this inspection you can avoid nasty surprises by having a complete assessment of the condition of your home. Something good to keep in the back of your mind, since it is not mandatory to have.
That's it!
This brings us to the end of the list. While you dream about the perfect kitchen and envision your ideal bathroom, it’s essential to consider the financial ‘funda’mentals. Have you started your househunt, or perhaps already found a home and have some questions, then please feel free to reach out to us.
We look forward to meeting you!
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