A buying agent (in Dutch: aankoopmakelaar, and the service is called aankoopbegeleiding) is your own estate agent when you buy a home, working only for you. They search with you, assess the property and the documents, decide on the offer together with you and negotiate until you have the keys. With us, that costs a fixed price of € 3,500 including VAT, for homes up to € 1 million.
Doesn’t the seller’s agent work for me too?
No. That is the misunderstanding I hear most often. The agent selling the home works for the seller. They do have to tell you everything they know about the property, which is called the duty to disclose (mededelingsplicht). But in the negotiation they stand up for the seller: the highest possible price and the most favourable terms.
A buying agent stands up only for your interests. And you need that, because as a buyer you also have a duty to investigate (onderzoeksplicht): you have to find out for yourself what you are buying. That is where we help.
What exactly does a buying agent do?
This is how we guide a purchase, from start to finish:
- Budget and search profile. First we look at what is realistic with your budget and set up a search profile together. That way you only see homes in places where you would really like to live.
- Watching the market. We follow the listings every day, also outside funda. Because of that, we sometimes hear about a home before it is online.
- Viewings with a building surveyor’s eye. I trained as a building inspector myself, so at a viewing I look beyond the furniture.
- Checking the documents. Ground lease (erfpacht), the owners’ association (VvE) documents and the deed.
- The offer and the negotiation. With as many offers as it takes.
- All the way to the keys. The purchase agreement, the arrangements with the notary and the key handover.
What do you get from the report on the property?
For a home you are seriously considering, we write a report. It brings together everything in the documents, with the connections we see. So you don’t have to read every document and piece the puzzle together yourself.
For an apartment, that saves a lot of work. An owners’ association (VvE) has a long-term maintenance plan (meerjarenonderhoudsplan, the schedule of major maintenance for the coming years), budgets and annual accounts. We put them side by side: what maintenance is planned, has enough money been set aside for it, and what does that mean later for your monthly contribution. That way you know exactly what you are buying.
How does a buying agent help with the offer?
We see what comparable homes in the area actually sold for, not just the asking price. And we are in the market every day. News about the housing market often lags a few months behind; we see what is happening right now at viewings and in bidding.
That lets us back up an offer properly. I have seen buyers who thought they had to bid above the asking price, and in the end we bought the home below it.
When should you bring in a buying agent?
Ideally at the start of your search. Then we look together at what is realistic with your budget and set up the search profile properly.
Have you already been searching yourself and found a home you like? You can bring us in then too. We can move quickly and help straight away with the documents, the viewing and the offer.
Moving to Amsterdam from abroad? See our page for expats buying a home.
What does a buying agent cost in Amsterdam?
With us you pay a fixed price of € 3,500 including VAT for homes up to € 1 million, no matter when you start with us. For one buyer it works out after one or two offers, for another we are busy for more than six months. To keep it fair and clear, we charge one fixed amount, with as many offers as it takes. You pay at the transfer at the notary. Above € 1 million, we agree a fee in advance.
What exactly is included, you can read on what a buying agent costs. All the other costs of buying are in the blog on the costs of buying a house in Amsterdam.
Who is a buying agent for?
Most of the buyers we guide are first-time buyers getting their first home. But we also help people who already own a home and are ready for something bigger or smaller. We can then also sell your current home, so everything is under one roof and the timing of buying and selling fits together well. More on that with our selling agent in Amsterdam.
Not sure whether you can do it yourself? Read what you need to know before you make an offer yourself, or see how we work as a buying agent in Amsterdam.
Would you like to know what a buying agent can do for your search? Feel free to book a free introduction.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a difference between purchase guidance and a buying agent?
No. Purchase guidance (aankoopbegeleiding) is what a buying agent does: they guide you through buying a home, from the search to the key handover.
Does every offer cost extra?
No. With us, an unlimited number of offers is included in the fixed price of € 3,500.
When do I pay the buying agent?
At the transfer at the notary, once the home is yours. If your search stops earlier, you pay for the work we have already done. What that is, is set out in advance in the agreement.
Do you also work outside Amsterdam?
Yes, also in Amstelveen and Diemen. Looking further afield? Just ask.
