Legal
"Why do I even need an agent? I can buy a house myself."
Anyone can open Funda and book a viewing. The VvE minutes, the maintenance plan and the small print in the contract are exactly what a buying agent is for. An honest look at where the real risks of buying a home actually hide.
I hear this question all the time. And honestly, it’s a completely fair one.
These days, anyone can open Funda. Anyone can book a viewing. In most cases, even making an offer isn’t particularly hard.
But everything that happens next is the part you can’t see in the photos. And that’s usually exactly where the problems start.
You buy a house once. The consequences last for years.
When people buy a €1,000 TV, they read dozens of reviews. When they buy a €30,000 car, they get it inspected. But somehow plenty of people think a €600,000 flat can be bought just because “we liked it.”
Unfortunately, that’s not how property works.
Behind a beautiful kitchen there can be a VvE with an empty bank account. Behind fresh paint, a leaking roof. Behind low monthly costs, a hefty special assessment waiting a year down the line. And behind the words “move-in ready” there can be a list of problems worth tens of thousands of euros.
My work doesn’t start at the viewing.
Most people think an agent’s job is to open the front door for you. That’s actually the easiest part.
The real work starts after the viewing. I go through documents most buyers have never seen before:
- the VvE’s financial accounts;
- the minutes of owners’ meetings;
- the long-term maintenance plan (MJOP);
- the VvE’s house rules;
- the land registry documents;
- the ground-lease (erfpacht) terms, if any;
- technical reports;
- documents on heat pumps, WKO systems, easements and other property quirks.
More often than not, that’s exactly where the answers live to questions that can cost you tens of thousands of euros.
Sometimes the problem isn’t the house itself.
Over the years I’ve seen just about everything.
A great house — but the VvE didn’t have the funds for the roof repair it had planned. Or it turned out the monthly service costs were about to jump sharply. Or the seller’s disclosure form didn’t quite match the rest of the paperwork. Or a buyer had nearly signed a contract without noticing a clause that could have caused serious problems down the line.
None of that is visible at a viewing.
A good agent doesn’t talk you into buying.
This might be the biggest misconception out there.
If my checks turn up a serious risk, I tell my client, plainly. Sometimes we walk away from a purchase entirely — yes, even after weeks of searching, and yes, even after they’d fallen for the place.
Because my job isn’t to buy at any cost. My job is to help you buy a good property on terms you understand. Sometimes the best advice is: “Don’t.”
Negotiation isn’t only about the price.
Many people think an agent’s job is simply to push the price down. Of course, if there’s room to negotiate a better price, we do.
But often it’s far more valuable to negotiate something else entirely. Things like:
- repairs to be completed before transfer;
- an extra check on the technical systems;
- extending the financing deadline;
- adjusting the contract terms;
- which fixtures or furniture are included;
- getting agreements properly documented, so nothing turns into a dispute later.
Sometimes those details matter a lot more than a discount of a few thousand euros.
The most expensive thing is a mistake you could have avoided.
Most people buy a home a handful of times in their life. For me, it’s daily work.
I already know which documents to look at first. Which clauses in a contract need extra attention. Which questions to ask the seller. Which answers should raise a flag. And where the problems tend to hide.
That doesn’t make a purchase risk-free. But it does mean avoiding a lot of unpleasant surprises.
In the end, you’re not paying for an agent’s services.
You’re paying for peace of mind.
Knowing the documents have genuinely been checked. That the questions have been asked. That the risks have been explained in plain language. That the contract protects your interests as far as it possibly can. And that there’s someone in your corner who represents the seller’s interests, the bank’s interests, or the notary’s — not at all, only yours.
That’s exactly why a good agent isn’t there to find you a house. You can find a house yourself these days.
A good agent is there so you don’t end up regretting the one you bought.