Questions and answers

Purchase

What’s the cooling-off period?
During the cooling-off period, the buyer can still undo the agreement. This gives the opportunity to consult experts, for example. The cooling-off period lasts (at least) three days and starts on the day following the day on which the buyer receives the signed deed (by both parties) or a copy thereof. The cooling-off period ends at midnight on the last day of the cooling-off period. It is therefore irrelevant at what time the buyer received the copy of the deed.

What are the buyer’s costs?
Costs buyer (k.k.) means that the buyer takes care of the costs for the transfer of the house. The cost buyer is about 10% of the purchase price. The costs buyer include the following costs:

– Transfer tax;
– Notary fees for the drawing up of the deed of delivery;
– Land registry costs for registration of the deed of transfer.

In addition to these costs, the buyer must also take into account:
– Notary fees for the preparation of the mortgage deed;
– Land registry costs for registration of the mortgage deed.

The costs for buyer never include the brokerage costs. If a seller engages a real estate agent for the sale of his/her property then the seller will have to pay the costs of this agent. If the buyer engages a real estate agent for the purchase of a property, the buyer will have to pay the costs of this agent.

What does ‘under offer’ mean?
If the real estate agent indicates that he is ‘under offer’, it means that he has a serious candidate, which he has promised not to promote transactions with others. However, this does not mean that viewings can no longer take place. The broker must then clearly indicate that it is ‘under offer’.

If I offer the asking price, does the seller have to sell the house to me?
No. The Supreme Court, has determined in a judgment that the asking price of a house is an invitation to make an offer. If you offer the asking price from an advertisement or housing guide, you make an offer. The seller can then still decide whether or not to accept your bid or to have his estate agent make a counter-bid. He may even decide to increase the asking price during the negotiations.

Sales

Is the broker’s commission in the ‘buyer costs’?
No. The costs for a buyer never include the brokerage costs. If you hire us for the sale of your home, you will have to pay the costs of our services.

What is an option?
An option in a legal sense gives a party the choice to make a unilateral declaration to conclude a purchase agreement with another party. The parties may agree on the condition of the purchase, but the buyer will, for example, be given another week in which to reflect on it.

Such an option is still customary when buying a new home. When buying an existing house, the term ‘option’ is often used incorrectly. Then it has the meaning of certain promises that a selling real estate agent can make to an interested buyer during the negotiation process. Such an undertaking may, for example, mean that an interested buyer is given a few days to think about a bid. In the meantime, the broker will try not to enter into negotiations with another party. The interested buyer can use this time to gain a better insight into his financing or into the possibilities of using the house.

You cannot demand an option; the seller and the selling real estate agent decide for themselves whether certain promises will be made in a negotiation process.

Negotiations

The real estate agent asks an extremely high price for a house, is that okay?
The seller decides what he sells his home for in consultation with his estate agent. The buyer can negotiate the price, but the seller decides. This applies to all matters that the seller considers important to decide whether he wants to sell his home to this buyer. If the seller and the buyer agree on these matters, there will be a sale.

Sometimes the seller and the buyer decide not to negotiate on a number of minor matters, such as ‘movable property’, until they agree on the main issues. In such a case, a court may decide that if the parties cannot agree on the side issues, now that they agree on the main issues that they themselves have indicated, they must continue to negotiate until a reasonable result has been achieved with regard to the side issues.

When will I be negotiating?
You cannot force yourself to negotiate. You are only negotiating when the seller responds to your offer. So: if the seller makes a counter-bid. The selling broker can also explicitly indicate that he is negotiating with you. You are not in negotiations if the selling broker indicates that he will discuss your offer with the seller.

Can a broker negotiate with more than one candidate at a time?
The broker can negotiate with several candidates at the same time. However, he must make this known to the parties involved.