What to say at an Amsterdam flat viewing (bezichtiging)

The listing is on Funda or Pararius. They want a complete folder, not a charming paragraph. The viewing itself is fifteen minutes in a hallway with six other people, and the person with the keys will decide from the papers, not from how well you describe the lichtinval.

The Dutch housing phrase page has the short lines for the door. This is the rest: the message that books the bezichtiging, the kale-huur words, and the waarborgsom cap on Rijksoverheid.

The message that gets you in

An Amsterdam ad is a code. Kale huur is the rent without service costs. Inclusief or all-in is kale huur plus servicekosten — and even then electricity and internet are often your own contracts. 2 kamers is two rooms, not two bedrooms; the woonkamer counts. Gemeubileerd is furnished. Ongemeubileerd is empty. Oplevering is the state they will hand it over in.

A message that works:

Goedemiddag, ik heb uw advertentie voor de woning in [buurt] gezien. Is deze nog vrij? Ik zou de woning graag willen bezichtigen. Ik heet [naam] en begin in [maand] in Amsterdam. Met vriendelijke groet

That is the job: name the listing, ask if it is free, ask for a time, say who you are. Is het nog vrij? and Kan ik de woning vanmiddag bezichtigen? are already on the housing page. Use u. Heb je tijd? is the wrong register.

Bring a folder: passport, the last three payslips or a job contract, and a short letter about who you are. People who show up with a smile and no papers do not get a second email.

What you actually ask in the flat

They will say Kom binnen. You say Dank u and you walk. Do not narrate the furniture.

• Zijn de servicekosten inbegrepen? — then ask what is inside them.
• Hoe hoog is de borg?
• Wanneer kan ik intrekken?
• Is de woning gemeubileerd?
• Kan ik me hier inschrijven bij de gemeente? — if they say no, this flat cannot do the BRP inschrijving.
• Wie betaalt gas, water, licht en internet?

Then the state of the place, out loud. Er is vocht in de badkamer is already on the housing page. Point, name it, take a photo.

Ask who pays gas, water, elektra, internet by name. An “all-in” rent almost never includes your own electricity meter.

Money words that are different in the Netherlands

From 1 July 2023 the waarborgsom (borg) may not be more than two months of kale huur — not all-in rent — on the Rijksoverheid waarborgsom page. A landlord who wants three months of all-in is using the wrong number.

Other words that show up the day you sign:

• de servicekosten — cleaning, a huismeester, shared utilities. They must be actual costs, with a yearly statement. Disputes go to the Huurcommissie.
• bemiddelingskosten — the agency fee. A tenant does not pay the fee of an agent hired by the landlord. Ask before you book.
• het puntensysteem — social-rent points that cap the kale huur on many flats. Ask which sector this contract is in.
• het opleveringsrapport — the handover list. Photograph every scratch on it.

Before you sign: Kan ik het huurcontract in rust lezen? Then Is het contract voor onbepaalde tijd? Open-ended is normal. A one-year lock with no exit is not a favour.

If you want it, say so in the room and hand over the folder. De woning bevalt me. Wat zijn de volgende stappen? Do not transfer a deposit to a stranger who will not meet you at the building.

If you do not want it: Dank u wel voor de bezichtiging. Ik laat het weten. You do not owe them a speech about the damp.